Misconceptions
by Arthur Hansen
Summary: Alexis Pierce a Gundum UC side story of New Types, fighting war on Earth! AltUniverse.
1. Training for War

Misconceptions  
  
Gundam, UC 79  
  
-  
  
Alexis Pierce stood up when the recruiting officer walked into the room. She read the name off of the little patch on his chest, Colonial Simpson. He was much bigger than Alex, but that was because she was only eighteen and a young woman. Well, she would be eighteen in twelve hours. Alex was pretty tall, topping out at 5' 10".  
  
"Congratulations. I understand that all of you volunteered to join the military. Preliminary results of your testing show a fairly high aptitude for kinetic skills and detail oriented mindsets." Simpson smiled. "That's just what we are looking for. You are being assigned to a new unit that is being built from the ground up."  
  
The six youngsters murmured their surprise. One of the recruits raised his hand.  
  
"Go ahead, Larson."  
  
"So what is our unit going to consist of, sir?" the wiry red haired man asked.  
  
"You don't have to worry. We aren't going to be training you to fly haulers, if that is what you are wondering. No, this unit is going to consist of the newly commissioned mobilesuit units that are going to be coming out very shortly." He gave them a look that brooked no argument. "This is classified top secret. You are not to tell anyone about these weapons."  
  
"Mobilesuits, sir?" Alex asked.  
  
"Yes. The Federation has just completed the design for a counter weapon against the Zeek's damned Zaku. Most of our new recruits are going to be trained exclusively for these." Captain Simpson shuffled some papers and pulled out printouts of a map. "You'll be assigned to barracks C, which is out of the way on this base. Sergeant Huros will be in charge of your preliminary training. Report to him immediately. That will be all."  
  
As the captain walked out, the new pilots looked among each other in surprise. Alex grabbed her duffel bag and started to walk out. The other recruits followed her very shortly. It took about twenty minutes, but they eventually found barracks C with little problem.  
  
Spike Montoya, one of the other recruits looked at the building speculatively. "I wonder who else we'll be bunking with?" He grimaced as he saw a group of workers putting in a foundation for a large building only a hundred feet behind the barracks.  
  
The older man who stepped into the doorway replied. "No one. This is just for you punks. All right! Fall in. Move it, move it you maggots!" the sergeant yelled out. He was almost pleased with how quickly they responded. "That was almost good enough. Pierce, Montoya! Fifty push-ups, now!"  
  
Spike and Alex frowned but dropped and started doing push-ups as the sergeant started in on his introduction.  
  
"I am Sergeant Huros. Do you know what that means, Larson?" the crop-haired, olive-skinned man shouted.  
  
"No, sir!"  
  
"It means that as far as you care, I'm God. When I give you an order, I mean for you to follow it immediately. You wimps will be spending the next two months learning the controls of your new mobilesuits. By the time you get them, you'll know how they work better than the people who engineered them." He took a deep breath. "During that time, I am going to attempt to whip you into some sort of physical shape. You will also go over tactics. Leave the strategy to the brains. If you live long enough, maybe we'll teach you some of that too."  
  
Alex finished her push-ups a good ten seconds faster than Spike. She stood back up and put herself at attention. It sounded like this sergeant was going to be a serious hard ass.  
  
"All right. Follow me and I'll show you the simulators. By the time I'm finished with you, you will hate them."  
  
-  
  
Two months later, the 102nd Tactical Unit had decided that they did, indeed, hate the simulators. They had been configured as the new RGM-79G. This was suit specifically designed for ground combat and economy. They'd managed to 'find' the simulator files for the "Gundam" and decided that quality really did make a difference.  
  
"Hey, Spike? Do you really think these things will function as promised?" Alex asked. She had cut her hair as short as any of the male pilots.  
  
Spike shrugged. "We'll see. They're shipping in the first units today."  
  
"Really?" She jumped up and looked out the window. "Would that be them?"  
  
The rest of the 102nd joined her at the small window. In the air where the medium transports that the Federation used. The pair of vehicles landed carefully in the newly cleared area in front of the reinforced hanger that had been constructed during their training.  
  
"All right! Pierce, Simpson and Montoya! Follow me." Sergeant Huros shouted as he opened the door. The rumbling roar of mighty jets filled the building. The three highest rated trainees followed the gruff man out to the landing field.  
  
They shaded their eyes. Even with the light cloud cover, it was still quite bright. The Rocky Mountains to the west added a breathtaking vista that they had all learned to ignore.   
  
Their engines immediately started to whine down moments after they landed. Large cargo doors opened and you could see large flatbed trailers that carried the tarp covered forms of the 102's new GMs.  
  
-  
  
"Captain." The deck crew of the Zeon cruiser bustled about their business as the lieutenant saluted the man in the control seat.  
  
"Carl. Are the Zaku ready for deployment?" Captain Titus asked.  
  
"Yes, sir. They should reach the engagement zone in half an hour. I still don't like this, Captain Titus. If they have functional mobile suits, we could be putting them into a very serious firefight." Lieutenant Lueng frowned deeply as he talked.  
  
"They'll be fine, Carl. All the Intel that we have says they are receiving three units today. And these units are being delivered to a small airbase and their trainees that haven't even used a mobilesuit." Titus smiled coldly. That new mobilesuit was causing a terrible ruckus to space command. He wasn't going to see that happen with his men. "Besides, we should outnumber them by one mobilesuit."  
  
"Yes, sir." He turned towards the communications officer. "Operation: Ground Snake is a go."  
  
"Initiate M-Particle saturation. Gunnery, as we come over the rise, take out those communication grids in Colorado Springs. Let's not give this base any warning." The captain watched as his bridge crew began to work in a hurried manner.  
  
As the large aerial cruiser came over the hills to the south, particle beam cannons struck the local communications centers in twelve separate areas of town. The two Gows opened their forward bay doors and dropped a pair of Zaku each.  
  
-  
  
Alex suddenly looked up. "Mynovski particles?" she said in consternation.  
  
"What did you say?" Huros said loudly. He said everything loudly.  
  
"Somebody is dumping a lot of M-particles into the area, sir!" She started to look around nervously. "I've got a bad feeling about this."  
  
Sergeant Huros didn't bother to reply as he ran into the crew area of the cargo transport they were in. "Radio the tower and see if something is going on."  
  
Alex had already climbed up and onto the top of the GM. A boot knife cut the sturdy tarp, revealing the closed hatch. In just moments, she had slipped in and shut the hatch. A sudden nervous fear damped her brow with sweat. She started the activation sequence as quickly as possible. Within seconds, the internal reactor was beginning to rev up.  
  
Sergeant Huros slid down the railing from the upper cabin. "I want you three up and prepped to go in five minutes! We may be under attack!"  
  
Spike Montoya and Tim Larson looked at each other in surprise. Spike yelled out, "Yes, sir! Pierce is already in one that's outside!"  
  
Tim yelled as he ran for next mobilesuit. "I thought these things took ten minutes to go from a cold start?"  
  
Alex's GM suddenly belched coolant and made a roaring sound as it sat up.  
  
"How the hell did she do that?" Spike yelled. That had to have been two minutes, tops!  
  
"Don't you mind! Get yer ass in the next GM before I shove my boot up you butt!" Huros yelled as he ran to the GM that was half in and out of the Medea transport.  
  
Alex grunted as the mobilesuit jerked a bit to its feet. "Damn things jerks more than the simulator." With seemingly well practiced movements, she knelt the GM nest to flatbed truck carrying the weapon components. She grabbed the beam spray gun and swore as the computer asked to calibrate the new weapon. "You piece of crap! I don't have time for this." With her left hand of the GM, she loaded its single beam saber into its shoulder holster.  
  
With another rumble, she stood up the GM and turned it towards the south. Getting a mobilesuit to actually run usually took a week of training. Trainers referred to that week as the "falls week" because it typically took days for the new pilot to get their feet under them. Uncannily, Alex only stumbled once before she got the hang of it.   
  
Several soldiers looked up in surprise as the GM tromped on by. Once she reached the end of the row, she triggered her thrusters and leapt over the intervening four story command center. Moments later, sirens began to wail.  
  
The colonel that she had just startled swore up a storm. "Who's in that mobilesuit? What is going on?" he yelled as he ran into the command central hub.  
  
A young woman turned to him. "I don't know. I'm not getting a response!"  
  
"It must be a spy! Tell Huros to get the other mobilesuits after it!" he roared. He spun to a group of soldiers who were checking a communications panel. "What are you doing?" Colonel Simpson yelled out.  
  
"We're trying to find out why our optical data lines aren't responding. According to the self-test, the cable's been cut ten miles away."  
  
"Ten miles? That's Colorado Springs!" the colonel grabbed the large binoculars and turned towards the south. "Oh my god. Sound incoming air raid! We've got enemy mobilesuits only minutes away!"  
  
"We're being jammed! M-particles at high saturation levels!"  
  
-  
  
Mantar was a fairly typical Zeon mobilesuit pilot. Not too smart and fairly quick. He'd seen enough combat to know how to react quick enough to keep himself alive. When the Federation GM suit rocketed over the small hill in between him and the enemy base he adroitly sidestepped a shot that looked like it could have hit him.  
  
"Damn pilot must be stupid or something, men! Those plasma beams don't have the range of our machine guns! Why don't we show our appreciation to our enemy and kill him mercifully!" Mantar shouted excitedly.  
  
The other three pilots acknowledged the orders, opening up with their machine guns, except for the one with a rocket bazooka. He was almost in position to take out the enemy command center. As his fellow pilots fired, he fired off a shot at the building. The laser-lock failed and the shot missed by fifty feet, disappearing over the hill. He grunted in vexation. "Damn! Missed!"  
  
"How the hell can that thing move like that?" Mantar yelled, starting to get angry. This was no trainee. This was a pro, no doubt! The strange mobilesuit in front of him ran and rocketed around like a maniac was in control. Only a few of the bullets even hit and at that distance had lost an appreciable amount of their velocity.  
  
"Don't worry, sir! I've got it!" the pilot of the Zaku with the rocket bazooka shouted. He had the navy-blue and white suit bracketed and immediately fired!  
  
Alex yelled as she suddenly urged her GM to leap into the air, spinning to fire wildly at the incoming missile. Her second shot managed to hit the missile, explosively.  
  
Mantar stared in shock. "Newtype!" He was so startled that he didn't even notice when a new GM tromped over the same rise and fired a rocket bazooka. He only had a moment to scream out orders before his squad mate exploded. "Damn!"  
  
Up in the control room of the Gow cruiser, Captain Titus frowned. The Federation's response had been far quicker than he had expected. It now seemed obvious that they had also sent in a trained pilot, probably to teach the recruits how to use it. "Communications, laser-com the Zaku with 'Tango-Tango' and prepared to pick up the survivors!"  
  
"Yes, sir!"  
  
Moments later, the Zaku started to retreat in great leaps and bounds. Alex started to follow when Lieutenant Huros laser-commed her. "I think they've had enough, private. Return to base."  
  
"But-"  
  
"That's an order!"  
  
"Yes, sir!" Alex slammed her fist against a panel. She was consumed with an anger that almost mastered her.   
  
-  
  
Captain Athena Wills walked along the corridor at a clipped pace. She rapped on a door with no identifying marks. She waited a second and then entered when she heard someone allowing her admittance.  
  
"Captain Wills reporting as ordered," she said tersely.  
  
Colonel Matthew nodded. "Please, sit down."  
  
"I take it we've had another pilot show amazing aptitude?" Athena asked as she doffed her Federation's officer cap.  
  
"Yes. One of the most damndest things. A recruit with that level of skill is just unheard of. Except for Amuro Ray, of course."  
  
"Yes, sir. But that's why we've kept an eye out. With this disturbing intelligence coming from Space Command about Zeon Newtypes, we have to investigate this ourselves. We can't let luck just deliver us an important asset like this." Athena almost vibrated with her intensity of belief.  
  
"Yes, yes. I understand." Colonel Matthews stood up and walked over to stare out his window. "We're gearing up for our offensive in Europe. This girl was slated to be shipped to the front in a GM. We're going to be transferring you to her tactical unit as their new Commanding Officer."  
  
"Yes, sir. If you don't mind me saying so, leaving her in a GM is a waste of her talents," the woman interjected.  
  
"I don't know if we'll be able to swing you a Gundam. They are in chronically short supply. And expensive to boot!"  
  
"The Pegasus has already proven the worth of an elite unit, sir. I'm not asking for this lightly. You know that, sir!"  
  
Matthews sighed. "I'll see what I can do."  
  
"Thank you, sir. I won't disappoint you."  
  
-  
  
Tim skidded into the bunk room of the 102nd's room. "Hey guys! Did you hear?"  
  
Alex looked up from her bunk where she was reading a spec manual on the mobilesuits. "What?"  
  
"Something about that sneak attack that the Zeeks did caught someone's attention! They're giving us a new CO."  
  
Spike pulled the girlie magazine that he'd laid over his face off and almost glared at the smaller man. "What of it?" That had been four days ago. Huros and Alex had already received medals of valor for successfully repulsing the assault.  
  
"I just heard through the rumor mill that she's a captain!" Timothy almost bubbled with enthusiasm.  
  
"That doesn't make sense. That's at least two grades higher than a tactical unit usually gets," Spike argued.  
  
"That's right. But this unit is no longer... usual." The uniformed figure framed the doorway. She stood only up to five feet four inches, but seemed to radiate a sense of command that was undeniable. A little bit of blonde hair peeked underneath her cap, which shadowed her deep, midnight blue eyes. "Form up!"  
  
Tim goggled for just a second and was just a little slow to react. The six soldiers of the 102 lined up and snapped sharp salutes.  
  
Captain Athena Wills looked over the group carefully. She looked over her shoulder towards the door that opened. "Sergeant Huros. Please fall in."  
  
He snapped a salute as he took his place at the closest end to her.   
  
Captain Wills then saluted. "At ease." She stared at them levelly for a few seconds. "I am Captain Wills. As Private Larson mentioned so loudly, I am a few ranks too high to be in charge of a 'mere' tactical squad. There are some very good reasons. You are not cleared for that information. It is on a need to know basis."  
  
The tactical squad murmured in surprise.  
  
"At least not yet. The parameter of this unit has undergone a change. You will still be shipping out for Europe in a week, not next month."  
  
"What? Excuse me, Captain. This unit is not fit for front line duty!" Huros interjected forcibly.  
  
"I understand your feelings in this matter. We will ship out in one week nonetheless. We will also be receiving the last of your mobilesuit units today."  
  
Spike whistled softly. Somebody was pushing really hard on their unit all of a sudden.  
  
A rumbling sound started to fill the room.  
  
Athena checked her military watch. "Exactly on time. Follow me." She turned and walked back out the door, quickly followed by the entire group.  
  
Alex and the others shaded her eyes. She squinted slightly as she saw the four Medea Transports landing in front of the new Mobilesuit Bunker.  
  
"Baker and Thomas! Unload Medea 52. Larson and Montoya, you have Medea 16. Huros and Long, you have Medea 99. Pierce and I will unload Medea 9," Athena barked out as sharply as Huros ever had.  
  
The soldiers blinked in surprise. They had been surprised by her willingness to jump in. Most Captains wouldn't be bothered to get their hands dirty. They got over it in short order.  
  
Athena snapped a salute to the flight technicians as the opened the bay doors on Medea 9. "Lieutenant Miller! Good to see you, sir."  
  
"Captain Wills! Your baby is ready and raring to go," the officer said as he shook Athena's hand.  
  
"Were you able to get the spare beam rifle?" she asked.  
  
"I don't know how you managed that, but yeah, we got 'er." Miller just scratched his head in consternation.  
  
"Um, Captain Wills?" Alex asked tentatively. "Our GMs don't have the power plants to fully power a beam rifle!"  
  
"That is correct, Private. This is not a GM, however."  
  
Alex turned her head suddenly. "A Gundam?" She whistled in appreciation and hopped up onto its flatbed.  
  
"Your Gundam."  
  
Alex spun around in surprise, tripping on the edge and falling on her butt. "My Gundam?"  
  
"Colonel Matthews and I believe you are the type of pilot that the Gundam was designed for. Leaving you in a GM would just waste your abilities."  
  
Alex just sat there stunned. What was this all about?  
  
Athena tipped the brim of her hat back. "After we get these mobilesuits settled in and get the technicians activating them, I'll brief you on your mission. We will also be having a very long talk about yourself."  
  
-  
  
Alex sat on her bunk, trying to read a magazine about fashion and style. If she'd been asked about what she was reading, she would have had to look to figure it out.  
  
"Private Pierce! You're next!" Captain Wills called out from her office door.  
  
Spike just walked past her, shuddering theatrically. "I think she's from Intel. Maybe they figure there's a spy on base," he whispered to her as they passed in the hall."  
  
Alex looked surprised. She schooled her face into a mask of calmness as she walked in. She saluted and then sat when directed. She was surprised when the captain stood up and started attaching a few discreet devices to the door, walls, floors and on the window.  
  
"That should be adequate. We're going to be working closely together, so please call me Athena. If you have any questions, please go ahead and ask," she said as she sat down at her desk.  
  
"Er, Athena, why did you just do that?" Alex asked as she waved across the room.  
  
"What I am about to tell you is classified." Athena tossed her a folder. "Here are your orders. Read through them and hand the folder back. I'll go over the basics as you read."  
  
"Yes, sir!"  
  
"Please, just Athena. As for what is going on, you have been assigned to a top security unit consisting only of Newtypes."  
  
"Newtypes? Isn't that something from the Zeeks propaganda?" Alex started reading. She was being promoted to sergeant? "I'm sorry, but I'm not really that familiar with it."  
  
"The Newtype phenomena has only been verified as a reality in the last year. The Zeon are working as quickly as they can to exploit their Newtypes. We have only verified two Newtypes that are capable of piloting mobilesuits. Amuro Ray is assigned to the Space Command at this point. You are the other one."  
  
"Me?"  
  
Athena nodded. "You. You exhibited an uncanny prescience during your first battle, knowing of the attack before the enemy was even spotted. Lieutenant Huros reported that you stated you 'felt' M-particles being seeded in the area. That was what really triggered my curiosity. The human body is incapable of detecting Mynovski particles."  
  
Alex looked confused, but didn't want to sound stupid. At Athena's reassuring nod, she finally asked, "What is a Newtype?" She'd always been able to feel that strange awareness of M-particles. What was so strange about that? Her mother had been able to do so too.  
  
"A Newtype is supposed to be some sort of evolutionary advancement due to humanities' expanding into outer space. According to Zeon doctrine, it will herald a new age. The Zeeks used this pretext to launch their aggressive war, killing millions," Athena said tightly. You could not miss the tension that lay under those words. It was a very rare person that had not lost someone important to them.  
  
"But I've never been into space. I was born here in the North America Quadrant," Alex explained.  
  
Athena blinked in surprise. "It doesn't necessarily have had to be you. It could have been one of your parents or grandparents."  
  
"I don't think they have either. I'm sure my mother would have mentioned it, at least. Besides, we are from a really poor, farming family."  
  
Athena pursed her lips. "That is... interesting."  
  
"I thought everyone could feel M-particles? My mother and I always felt when they were doing that testing up near Black Hawk," the young woman explained as best as possible, her confusion quite evident.  
  
"Black Hawk. That's where they did the testing on new fusion reactors. A lot of sub-atomic particle research was used in that," the captain mused. "If you don't mind, I'm going to do some checking. A Newtype that was born on Earth, with no contact to the mutating effects of space travel. It's quite interesting." Considering, hadn't she just heard of a plan to get one of the Zeon Newtypes to come to Earth to see if it affected her abilities?  
  
"If you say so."  
  
"You said your mother could feel it too?" Midnight blue eyes watched Alex closely.  
  
"Uh, yeah. She said it affected her, um, sight."  
  
Athena looked confused. "Sight? That's something I've never heard of before."  
  
"Not her eyes, her... sixthsense," Alex finished quickly in a mumble. She stared at the ground uncomfortably.  
  
"Sixth sense? She claimed to be a psychic?"  
  
"She always was a little weird, if you know what I mean."  
  
"Thank you for your candor. I do appreciate it, Alex. I think that's enough for now." Athena stood up and handed Alex her new pips. "Congratulations, by the way. That was a superb job you did there."  
  
"Thank you." Alex was a little wild-eyed at this point. She really wanted something to distract her at this point.   
  
-  
  
Mantar grit his teeth as he prepared to launch using the new Rik Dom he'd been assigned to. He could hear the engines of the Gow rumbling through everything. This was going to be a fairly major operation. Some big-wigs wanted to blunt the looming Federation offensive that seemed to be in the making. Mantar and his men were going to overwhelm the same base they had hit just a few days ago.  
  
Up on the bridge of the Gow, Captain Titus looked over to Lieutenant Lueng. "Carl, I just got some last minute satellite Intel. It appears that they just had a flight of Medea Transports that showed up out of the blue this morning."  
  
Carl pursed his lips. "It shouldn't make a difference. We have ten mobile suits, half of which are the new Rik Doms. They are supposed to be more than a match even for that 'Gundam' that we've been hearing about."  
  
"Inform Mantar that there may be stiffer resistance than expected," Titus commanded. He swiveled his chair back to the front. "Commence operation."  
  
The four Gows and their fighter escorts turned ponderously and accelerated to attack velocity. As the battle group topped over the hills to the south of Colorado Springs again, they leveled communication emplacements and a few antiaircraft vehicles. The Rik Doms and Zaku IIs spread out in a battle line as they tromped over the rolling hills towards the base just over the hill again.  
  
Sergeant Huros yelled out over the laser-com, "Let's do this! All units, open fire!"  
  
From four emplacement pits, three GMs and one Gundam fired a salvo of rocket bazookas and one beam rifle, catching the attacking units in a vicious crossfire! As far as the Zeon soldiers could tell, the empty woods and hills started laying down a heavy fire.  
  
Alex grinned in her new Gundam, which was hidden underneath its own camouflage. "I guess training to set up an ambush on an attack squadron wasn't such a bad idea after all!"  
  
Mantar screamed out, "Take out those snipers! Move it or lose it!" His own Rik Dom started to jink and dodge erratically as it positioned for an attack on the beam weapon emplacement. He lined up his shot and fired, when the target erupted into flame!  
  
The Gundam's camouflage burned off as it landed, just as it was supposed to do. Alex charged towards the surprised mobilesuits. Two more shots took out the flatfooted Zakus, while a third only winged the second Rik Dom.  
  
Captain Titus gripped the arms of his chairs. "We've lost how many mobile suits?"  
  
"Four, sir! The Feddies had laid down some sort of ambush! Bastards!" the communications officer called out.  
  
"We're taking fire from nine o'clock high!" one of the pilots yelled out as he felt the ship shudder under him.  
  
Federation high speed attack fighters swooped over the confining mountains at nearly full speed, slowing down as quickly as they could to unleash blistering particle beam blasts as they chopped through the Zeon fighter formation and hit the west most Gow. That giant air wing shuddered for just a second and then exploded.  
  
Athena smiled grimly as she walked her GM forward, leading the last three GMs over the ridge to attack the Zeon mobilesuits head on. The colonel in charge of the base had stationed marines several dozen miles out with laser-com equipment. He'd run them ragged with the extra patrols, but it had just paid off handsomely.  
  
The new GMs unloaded on the Zeon mobilesuits, catching them in the flank again. Two more mobilesuits were knocked out of commission with their first shot. "Let's rip into them, men!" she yelled out.  
  
Mantar swore as even more Federation mobilesuits entered the battle. He saw one of them make a mistake no trained soldier who'd been on a battlefield do. "Looks like most of them are pretty raw! Use that against them, men!"  
  
The Rik Doms were very maneuverable, able to zip around like hovercraft. They started using their advantage to take increasingly accurate shots at the slower responding GMs. Two GMs exploded before their pilots even realized they were being attacked.  
  
The Zaku IIs were nowhere near as effective, but were able to hold their own. Most of the Zeon pilots were keeping an eye out for that overly fast Gundam. By doing that, they had managed to avoid getting shot with its beam rifle so far.  
  
"That's enough of that!" Alex yelled out. She rocketed the Gundam forward at two Zaku that had bunched a bit to cover each other. Their machine guns bounced ineffectively off of her angled shield, even as the Gundam whipped out its beam saber. With blinding speed, it cut both of the Zaku in half with one swing.  
  
Before she even landed, Alex spun her Gundam to slash into her blind spot and landed heavily. Her beam saber sliced through the legs of a Rik Dom that had attempted to blindside her.  
  
Mantar goggled. That must be the Newtype! That had to have been in its blind spot! If he'd been a bit closer, he would have tried that too! He toggled a switch to try and contact the Gows. "We're getting chewed down here! They've got one of those Gundams that we've heard about! The pilot has to be a Newtype!"  
  
Lieutenant Lueng looked over at Captain Titus. "We've lost six mobilesuits so far. We've only taken out three of the enemy suits. It doesn't look like the mobilesuits will be able to take the base at this point."  
  
"We're going to switch to a bombing run. We'll blow up the base and retreat. All Gows and escort fighters, prepare to switch headings on my mark. We're going to about ascend to seven thousand feet and unload on that base. Carl, have the mobilesuits retreat." Captain Titus chewed his lip for a second. It was time to be decisive. That was the only way to win this minor battle.  
  
"They're retreating! Keep up the pressure! At this rate, we'll have destroyed all of them," Huros yelled excitedly.  
  
"Sergeant! I think... the Gows are going to attack the base!" Alex spun her Gundam around and rocketed towards the west.  
  
"Get back here! You're leaving us exposed here!" Huros yelled loudly. His battered GM fired another two shots in quick succession at the retreating Rik Doms.  
  
"Belay that order! Sergeant Pierce, you are freed to act independently under my authority," Captain Wills snapped across laser-com.  
  
"Captain? We don't have time for some crazed-"  
  
"Sergeant Huros, shut up. That's a direct order. Do you understand?" Athena said, cutting off her second in command.  
  
The surviving GM pilots were all surprised. Something really unusual was going on here.  
  
"Aye, aye, Captain!" Huros spat out. "Montoya! Snap it up there and try to flank them."  
  
Alex barely even heard the commotion that her abrupt departure had caused. Her Gundam was leaping up the side of mountain as agilely as a goat. A driving need pushed her ever onward and up. At the top of the mountain ridge, she just held in the throttle of her Gundam's thrusters, launching it into the air right in front of a Gow carrier.  
  
"Coming up to attack speed, Captain!" the pilot of the Gow Cleo called over his shoulder.  
  
"All ships are in formation. Dopp fighters are prepared to strafe the base on our orders, targeting anti-aircraft batteries!" Lieutenant Lueng called out from his console.  
  
"Very well." Captain Titus nodded in approval.  
  
"Captain! Something just happened to the Memnes! It's listing and on fire, no response from the pilot."  
  
"How the hell did that mobilesuit end up on top of the Memnes?" Carl Lueng shouted as he spotted the Gundam on top of that Gow.  
  
"That pilots going to try and blast us all by himself? Orders to the fighter escort! Have them ready to sweep across the top of the Cleo and brush this insect off of our back!" the captain thundered.  
  
"What about the Diana?" the com officer yelled.  
  
"It's too late for them."  
  
The Gundam ran across the wings of the doomed Gow carrier Memnes. In front of it lay another Gow. The crew of the Diana barely had time realize they were under attack by a deadly foe when the Gundam landed on top of it.  
  
"It's on top of us!" the pilot of the Diana screamed. He could feel the Gow shudder as the mobilesuit moved overhead. The blinding light of a beam cannon covered his momentary scream of terror before he and the crew were vaporized.  
  
Alex turned her Gundam away from the belching hole she had just blasted through the bridge of the Gow. She started to run towards the last Gow in the row when she almost physically felt the readied attack against her if she leaped towards the last Gow. With a screech of metal on metal, she skidded the Gundam to a halt on the very tip of the wing of the giant air-wing.  
  
"What the fuck was that?" Alex said to herself. The Gow was turning away from her, getting away. With a snarl, she snapped of shot after shot at the Gow's engines. Her gun cycled only three shots before failing to fire. "Now what?"  
  
"That pilot must have the devil's own luck!" Titus looked over his tactical display. "Order a full retreat. We're going to attempt to pick up any surviving mobile suit units."  
  
"We're losing engine thrust on engine one! That pilot must have shot it out!" the Gow's pilot yelled out.  
  
"Damn the Feddies! Have the Dopp fighters make their own attack run on that base and then regroup to a defensive screen around us! Detail a wing to blow that Gundam off of the Diana!" Lieutenant Lueng shouted.  
  
Dopp fighters screamed off at full power to follow their orders. They really didn't have the firepower to truly inflict telling damage on a modern air base, but they were going to try! The four Dopps that were ordered to attack the strange mobile suit almost snarled in unison as the looped under the Cleo and spat machinegun fire at the brightly colored figure that stood on the Athena's burning deck.  
  
"Damndamndamndamn and double damn!" Alex yelled as her Gundam lurched. The Gow was starting to drift towards the ground thousands of feet below them. Machinegun spattered off of the Gundam's armor. Far faster than anyone should have been able to, vulcan gunfire raked out at the fighters, destroying two of them outright.  
  
The two remaining fighters looped out and around. The lead pilot informed his wingman, "It looks like our friend down there ran his beam rifle dry. Stay out of the effective range of those head cannons and we'll chop him up!"  
  
"Yes SIR!" the wing man shouted almost gleefully. He locked on missiles to the Gundam and fired, growling in anger as the Gundam fired its head cannons and took them out. That pilot must have the devil's own luck!  
  
Warning lights started to blink frantically while alarms started their raucous warbling. "I know we're falling from over three thousand feet, you dumb computer!" Alex shouted, panic starting to creep into her voice. She was going to die! There didn't seem to be anything that she could do. She was even willing to trust that stupid sixth-sense-mumbo-jumbo that her mother had always talked about. "Oh, hell! Why not?"  
  
With that, she just followed her instincts, running back up towards the center and back of the top of the doomed Gow known as Athena. The Dopp fighters still tried to gun her down, but seem confused about what she was trying to do. The Athena was only moments away from impacting into a hill almost head on!  
  
"Got it! This is so crazy it might even work!" she crowed to herself.  
  
Spike just watched from almost two miles away from the crashing Gow. "Did you see that, Captain? I can't believe it!"  
  
"Now all she has to do is survive her heroics!" Captain Wills called out, only taking a moment off of watching the surviving Rik Doms retreating further and faster than her crew could follow.  
  
Alex took in a deep breath and then yelled out, "YAHOO!" as the Athena plowed into hill. It crumpled majestically even as secondary explosions started to rip through it. At what seemed like the very last moment, Alex slammed the throttle arms all the way forward. She knew that the Gundam didn't have the thrust to slow her down enough to survive impact.  
  
But it did have enough thrust to push her over the top of the hill. Guided more by luck than training she tried to frantically keep her feet underneath her as the Gundam skidded gigantic furrows down the hill. Trees and smaller boulders just shattered as they got in her way, until the Gundam finally stopped. Over stressed actuators whined in complaint and the Gundam could barely stand, but Alex only had bruises to show for her amazing brush with death.  
  
"Impossible!" Sergeant Major Huros shouted. No mobilesuit could have done that. None!  
  
"Way to go!" Tim shouted.  
  
And Captain Wills just smiled to herself. Even better than she had hoped.  
  
-  
  
In the Mobilesuit hangar, Huros threw his helmet at the ground right in front of Alex. "Alright, Pierce! I don't know what you were thinking, but that sort of gung-ho heroics is shit! Not only could you have gotten yourself killed, you could have-"  
  
"Sergeant Major Huros. What do you think you are doing?" Captain Wills demanded imperiously as she walked up.  
  
"Captain?" the befuddled Sergeant asked.  
  
"I will talk to you privately, later." The blond haired captain turned to her command. "Congratulations on your victory. Go take a shower and get some rest. Dismissed."  
  
She waited for everyone but Huros to leave.  
  
"Excuse my candor, Captain! What the fuck do you think you are doing undermining my authority?"  
  
"Your authority? Sergeant, this is my tactical unit now. Sergeant Pierce is to be trusted implicitly when it comes to her hunches! And I gave her my direct order to continue," Athena snarled right back at the huge man.  
  
"What the hell sort of crap is that, Sir?"  
  
"That is classified!"  
  
"I think I have a need to know here, dammit!"  
  
Athena was almost shaking in her fury. Mastering herself finally. "This under the strict guidelines of Top Secret clearances. Do you understand?" At his nod and sudden understanding of the seriousness of the nature of what she was about to relate, she continued. "Sergeant Alex Pierce has been identified as a strong New Type. Her New Type abilities are to be fostered and trained as best as possible, as they may be a vital strategic ability to the Federation. There is no one, repeat, no one within this tactical squadron that is more important to get home alive than Pierce."  
  
Huros just blinked, then got even more furious. "She's a snot nosed brat-"  
  
"Are you understanding anything that I just told you, Sergeant?"  
  
His face started turning beat red. "I am not going to let some mumbo-jumbo punk-assed kid with delusions of grandeur think that she can-"  
  
Click. Captain Wills had her sidearm pointed at his chest. "Sergeant Huros, you may consider yourself under arrest for disobeying orders and possible charges of treason-"  
  
Huros just leaped forward in a murderous fury, with the full intention of taking the sidearm away. This little, no good little bitch was just irritating the hell out of him and needed to learn a lesson.  
  
The thundering gunshot echoed in the hanger as the two bodies collided.  
  
-  
  
"Attention!" barked out an unfamiliar voice in the barracks. "Fall in!" the tall, imposing man in the uniform of a colonial yelled out.  
  
The 102 fell into line with amazing alacrity, in various states of dress. Alex prayed that her towel would stay in place, as she had just exited the shower.  
  
"Sergeant Pierce? Front and center!" Colonial Simpson shouted out.  
  
"Sir! Yes, Sir!" she snapped out while saluting. She started praying harder.  
  
"Assemble your men in two hours for an emergency deployment. Meet me in ten minutes for instructions regarding the change of command with your tactical squad. Dismissed!" With that, Simpson turned on his heels and moved out of the barracks at a fast walk.  
  
"What the hell was that all about, Alex?" Tim asked.  
  
"Yeah!" Spike chimed in.  
  
"Not a damn idea, guys." Alex started to throw clothes on as quickly as possible. Nudity taboos had lasted a total of two days before the extra pushups that she'd had to endure had killed that idea.  
  
"Well, good luck! Colonial Simpson is supposed to be harder than Huros!" Tim said glibly.  
  
Alex smoothed her hair back and stuffed it under he cap. "Well, you heard him. Spike, I want you and Tim to get the rest of these guys ready and check with the repair teams for the Mobilesuits. I want a full list of functionals and what it'll take to be ready in fifty-five minutes."  
  
"Ah, man!"  
  
The sergeant didn't even bother to find out who made the comment as she stepped out of their barracks. She started to trot towards the command center. She backtracked a moment later and then hopped into the squads assigned ride. Within moments, she was driving at almost reckless speeds towards the main command center.  
  
After some quick directions to the CO's office from a sentry that challenged her, she managed to find it within a short time, only showing up a minute late.  
  
She rapped on the door. "Colonial Simpson?"  
  
"Come in. I'm impressed. I wasn't expecting you for another five minutes."  
  
"Sorry, sir! I'm not familiar with the layout of this building!"  
  
Simpson narrowed his eyes. "No reason you should have been. Due to an incident with Captain Wills and Sergeant Major Huros, you are in command of the 102nd tactical squad effective immediately."  
  
Alex looked down for a second. "May I inquire as to what happened, Sir?"  
  
"Not at this time. There is most likely going to be a trial. You will be needed as a witness, so don't go and get yourself killed." The colonial stood up and spread out a map. "This will be throwing you to the wolves, but Jaburo wants that last Gow finished off. It appears to have gone to ground near Denver, which is held by the Zeon, of course."  
  
"Yes, sir. What are our orders?"  
  
Simpson narrowed his eyes at her. "You are to get your troops to the suspected landing zone of that Gow and exterminate them with extreme prejudice. Your actions may determine the direction of the inquiry into the incident between Huros and Wills. That is all." He spun back to his computer.  
  
-  
  
"Incident?" Tim asked.  
  
"That what he said. I'm as much in the dark as you guys," Alex said. She shrugged theatrically. "How many mobilesuits are functional?"  
  
"Four that pretty functional. Two more are fixable in two days. Captain Wills was almost as tough on her GM as you were on your Gundam," Spike replied.  
  
"Looks like I'll be using Huro's GM. Have everything prepped for us to depart at 18:00 hours. We'll then have a briefing and then move out."  
  
"Eighteen-? That isn't enough time to properly repair these guys!" Tim called out.  
  
"Just get them fixed up as best as possible. These orders come from Jaburo!"  
  
Just minutes later, the remnants of the 102 were gathered around a table that Alex had set up. Maps and papers were strewn around.  
  
"You guys have done an amazing job! Thanks a lot for your hard work. Here we go." Alex took a quick breath. Her first command. Don't screw it up. "The enemy Gow that attempted to attack us earlier has holed up near Denver, at an old airbase. It's pretty lightly defended and Command has decided that they want that unit annihilated utterly." Alex took a swig from her water flask. "We've only got four effectives right now. Nick, Spike, Tim and myself will take the functioning GMs and do a two prong attack."  
  
Tim looked over the area. "The terrain is easier to get through here, where the road is."  
  
"That's correct, but they've got ack-acks and anti-armor weapons there too. On the other hand, it's a good distraction. This hill is impassible for anything except, of course, Mobilesuits. These guys seem to be old hands at this." Alex suddenly smiled a nasty little grin. "They probably don't think much of us yet. We'll set up a diversion at the main gate to make us look inept. The real attack will be over that hill."  
  
"Whoever is knocking on their front door is going to get beat down pretty hard," Spike noted.  
  
Alex pursed her lips in thought. "I'll be the distraction. Spike, you're in charge of the actual assault on the hanger."  
  
-  
  
"Hey, Gunnie?" a Zeon private yelled out.  
  
"What?" the gunnery sergeant yelled back.  
  
"Something's tromping its way towards us, around the bend."  
  
"Fall in! Looks like the Feddies are coming right down our guns! What a bunch of idiots!" he yelled back. In moments, all of the tanks and anti-armor emplacements rotated towards the road. "Come in, Echo-niner! Looks like we've got unfriendlies walking into our guns." He listened a second. "Yeah, I know. They must have taken the stupid-Feddies course of strategy."  
  
A GM suddenly walked around the corner, its Spray Particle Gun (SBG) at the ready.  
  
"Fire!" the sergeant yelled. Ha! He'd get to bag one of the new Feddie mobilesuits. Damned idiots didn't even know what to do with them-???  
  
The man couldn't believe his own eyes as the suit suddenly rocketed sideways in an amazing dodge and then leaped into the air. The anti-aircraft guns just couldn't track something that big making such advanced maneuvers. Two tanks exploded from blistering return fire.  
  
"It's some sort of Feddie Ace!" he screamed into his Com. "We need those new Mobile Suits out here to help us repulse the attack."  
  
Mantar looked up from where his Rik Dom was getting some armor repaired in the spacious hangar that held the wounded Gow Memnes and its escorts. "What the? Shit! That New Type is here?"  
  
Lieutenant Carl Lueng pulled himself out of the guts of the other surviving Rik Dom. "You heard the man, Mantar! Get in that Mobile Suit and drive off the enemy!"  
  
"But Sir!"  
  
"I know you'll be almost a sitting duck, but this bases' defenses can not stand up to a concerted attack from a MS Ace!" Carl Lueng stood up and saluted.  
  
His mouth suddenly dry, Corporeal Mantar saluted back. "Yes, sir." In moments, he was in his rapidly activating mobile suit. He tromped out of hangar with the Memnes at his back. He was about to turn towards the main gate of the compound when he caught a glint at the top of the hill. "Ah, shit. It's a diversion!" he yelled into his commo.  
  
The air bases commander in his bunker blinked at that. "What the hell are you talking about, pilot?" he called out suddenly into the headset he was wearing.  
  
"They're flanking us!" Mantar yelled, almost in a panic.  
  
"We've been spotted," Spike shouted. "Charge!" He pushed his GM into a loping gait and then leaped at the last moment. The enemy's fire scorched the paint on the bottom of his GM's feet.  
  
Behind him, Nick had ducked behind him to shift his position. The wild shot hit a weakened section of the armor and started to spurt vapor. "I'm hit! I'm losing coolant! It isn't shutting down!" the panicked pilot screamed.  
  
"Punch out, Nick! Damn it, punch out!" Tim yelled. That thing was going to blow! He pushed his own GM into a frantic run. He had only made it about fifty feet before Nick's GM exploded, pushing him forward even faster.  
  
Back at the gates to the air base, Alex spun her GM sharply. "How did that happen? The plan is going to the crapper!" She suddenly charged the remaining anti-aircraft guns. The gunners panicked and ran, so she didn't even have to do anything except step on two of them in passing.  
  
She crouched the GM and then leaped over the corner of the huge building. Right below her landing zone was a Rik Dom that was shooting at the remaining GMs.  
  
Mantar suddenly felt a palpable anger emanating from above! He was so shocked at the feeling that he barely even noted that he just stood there as the GM activated its beam sword as it came down. At the last moment, he tried to move, but it was too late.  
  
His Rik Dom's armor failed almost instantly. The beam sword slashed effortlessly through the pilots compartment and into the core. Alex rocket leaped again on pure instinct, just a bare moment before the mobilesuit exploded.  
  
Technician's screamed two Federation Mobile Suits dashed through the door and into the armored hanger. Carl looked up from his repair work to see a nightmare entering. With brutal efficiency, they let loose with blistering fire into the damaged Memnes. "Captain Titus! Get out now!"  
  
Whatever the captain's response, it wasn't fast enough. With a mighty boom, the Gow started to explode, killing all aboard. Carl just stared in shock. His friends were now gone.  
  
With a cry of anger, he tried to ignore the tromping of mobilesuit and repair the final Rik Dom. He'd show those bastards.  
  
"Step away from the Mobilesuit," a voice blared out from the GM that was standing.  
  
Carl Lueng spun around, his fists tight in anger.  
  
"I don't want to hurt you, but that Mobilesuit is coming with us," the pilot said.  
  
The voice sound like a woman's voice, he thought to himself. He was too caught up in his anger to really notice anything beyond that about his enemy.  
  
"Just back away. I really don't want to hurt you?" the voice said from the GM.  
  
Another GM tromped up. "Ah, just kill him already! Damn Zeeks are all bastards anyways!" the male voice from it called out.  
  
"I don't kill defenseless people. Even Zeon," she retorted. "I won't sink to their level."  
  
Carl tried to climb into the cockpit of the mecha, but he was plucked from the gantry like he was a rat. He thought for sure that he was about to die. Not many pilots were good enough to not crush a human, he idly thought.   
  
"There you go. Spike, pick up that mobilesuit and let's hoof it back to the base." The GM set the Zeon soldier down. With reasonable care he was placed next to some of the men from the base trying to put out the fire.  
  
Carl just stared. He'd have some bruises from that. But he really wasn't hurt. All he could do was just stare as the three Feddie Mobilesuits left with the last Rik Dom. He was brought back to his senses as one of the firefighters screamed for help.  
  
-  
  
"I would like to say how proud I am. We have struck back against the Zeon fascists with their murderous tactics. No longer do they have the technical superiority to dominate the battlefield." Colonial Simpson looked over the parade ground and the four rows of soldiers. "Sergeant Pierce, step forward." He pinned a medal to her chest.  
  
At his nod, she backed up into the ranks. He called up another fifteen people to receive a similar medal. Her stomach churned. The scuttlebutt had it that the 102nd was due to be dissolved and they were going to be transferred.  
  
"I had to pull some strings to get those medals for you this quick. Once again, let me tell you how proud I am of you all." Simpson saluted them, to which they all responded. He nodded at Alex, Tim and Spike. "You three have probably heard, the 102nd has been dissolved. You are all transferring to the new 85th Tactical Squad."  
  
"Yes, Sir!" they said.  
  
"You've got someone's eye, Pierce. You're the new CO of that unit. Do me proud. You'll ship out to England at 2200 hours. That's all," he finished. He saluted one more time and then abruptly walked off with his second in command.  
  
Spike just looked pleased as the cat that bagged the mouse. "England! I'd heard that the operation was going to be in Europe!"  
  
Tim just nodded and fiddled with his sun glasses. "Congratulations, Alex. Looks like we didn't screw up enough to mess up your promotion!"  
  
"You guys did the best you could. Nick just got hit with a lucky shot," Alex said as she grabbed them both by their shoulders and hung off between them. "Let's hit the bar."  
  
"I thought we were on duty?" Spike asked, slightly startled.  
  
Alex just winked. "I won't tell if you won't! Besides, we deserve a bit of celebration."  
  
"You're on, Sarge!" Tim said enthusiastically.  
  
Cast of characters:  
  
Sergeant Alexis Pierce - main hero of the story.  
  
Sergeant Major Huros - bigoted first C/O.  
  
Captain Athena Wills - mysterious C/O, in charge of the New Type battalion on Earth for the Federation.  
  
PFC Timothy Larson - survivor of the 102nd, transferred to the 85th.  
  
PFC (now Corporeal) "Spike" Montoya - survivor of the 102nd, transferred to the 85th.  
  
Lieutenant Carl Lueng - Zeon officer that survives attacking Colorado Springs.  
  
Corporeal Mantar - Zeon MS Pilot, KIA in battle near Denver.  
  
Colonial Simpson - in charge of Colorado Springs Air Base.  
  
Captain Titus - Gow Captain that goes down with his command.  
  
Colonel   
  
Lieutenant-Colonel   
  
Major   
  
Captain   
  
Lieutenant   
  
2nd Lieutenant   
  
Sergeant Major   
  
Sergeant   
  
Corporal   
  
Lance Corporal   
  
Private 


	2. War Tribune and War Front

Misconceptions 2

Gundam, UC 79

* * *

Alex groaned as she tried shift in her canvas bench seat. The deep throb of the heavy engines had done a marvelous job of keeping her awake on the flight over the Atlantic. She looked over at her two squad-mates that had managed to nod off somehow. There was limited room on the transports, all three of them were crammed in here, next to the tarp covered Gundam and it's equipment.

They only had another six hours or so before they hit the ground in Great Britain. They lived in the space age and were still flying transports that could barely go supersonic.

The PA system chimed loudly. "Sergeant Pierce to the bridge. Repeat, Sergeant Pierce to the bridge."

Alex muttered to herself darkly as she undid her harness. She stretched on wobbly legs, easing a crick in her back. She kneaded her uniform covered back as she went forward and then up the crawl-well.

"What's up?" she asked as she shimmied up into the bridge.

"I've got new orders for you, just came off the wire." Captain Boze handed her a sheaf of papers. He almost seemed to have a bit of grudging pity.

Alex had a bad feeling as she flipped open the paper. "Jaburo? How come they didn't have me fly from the North American Quadrant?" She read a little more, a throbbing headache starting to build in her head. "This can't be right. There's no way that I can make that time."

"I just delivered the orders." Boze seemed to consider her for a moment. "You'll never make it, if you have to figure out transport in the Euro Quadrant. You're looking at twelve hours, minimum."

The young pilot narrowed her eyes in thought. This was a test, she suddenly realized. "I'll do my best. Orders received." Alex snapped a pretty crisp salute for being barely awake.

Boze saluted her back. "Good luck."

Alex slid down the rails to the lower levels of the transport. How the heck was she supposed to get to Jaburo in the South American Quadrant? All she had were five broken down GMs and one Gundam. And it's not like they could fly... She smacked herself suddenly. "Doh!"

She kicked her two subordinates' feet, waking them back up. "Up an at 'em, you two. I need your help with getting the Gundam's Core Fighter prepped for flight in fifteen minutes.

Spike just tussled his out-of-control hair. "Say what?"

"I've been ordered to Jaburo by..." Alex checked her watch and refigured her time zones. "...eighteen-hundred hours, Jaburo local time." She sighed. "Only way I'm doing that is by flying on the wings of angels." And a lot of luck, she thought to herself, bitterly.

"That really sucks." Tim thought about that for a second. "Sorry, I'm sure you know that already. You're not thinking about flying all by yourself _all_ the way to Jaburo?"

"Sure, why not?" Alex asked as she started to pull the tarp from her Core Fighter, where it was folded up for transporting.

"You aren't a real pilot, you've only done the simulator and one time up and around," Tim argued. Was she really planning of flying there by herself?

"Don't worry about it. If I don't make it, they'll just get you guys a real CO and you'll be better off," the sergeant said with a touch of dark sarcasm.

"Hey, now! Don't get so touchy! You're loads better than Huros! Don't go and die to get us saddled with someone like him!" Spike held up his hands and shook his head vehemently. He smiled after a moment, letting her know he wasn't too serious about it.

"Did you guys go over the manual for mid-air launch for a Core Fighter when it's folded up?" Alex asked as she popped the canopy open of the fighter.

Tim thought a moment. "I'm pretty sure they say you have to launch from thirty thousand feet. Engine has to be warmed up first, I think. Otherwise, you'll just splat. These Core Fighters aren't bad, but they really aren't that great a fighter."

* * *

"Captain Boze? I'm ready to be released," Alex said from the cockpit of her Core Fighter. The bay doors of the Medea Transport rattled open in the high altitude. The odd, boxy-like transport with wings was impossible before the advent of high thrust rockets would have been flatly impossible.

"Roger. The hold is depressurized, prepare to be disembarked. Release and God speed, Sergeant Pierce." Boze looked over at his communications officer, who was also in charge on keeping track of everything around them. Radar was only used to double check position, most of the time.

"She's away and dropping." Miguel looked on with concern. He didn't remember someone actually doing this maneuver before. Just the textbook explanations that it was possible.

Tim and Spike listened with bated breath.

Miguel suddenly tensed. "It looks like she's starting to spin. No, she's got it."

Everyone on the bridge sighed.

Through the static of Mynovski they head Alex's voice, "I'm clear. See you in England!" Alex desperately tried to remember everything she needed to do while piloting the small fighter. It wasn't really designed for long distance journeys. It only had a cruising speed of Mach 1.5. She was going to be stuck in this cockpit for hours.

And she suddenly realized, she wouldn't be invisible to long distance radar either. The Core Fighter was an amazing piece of engineering, but it had no room for the Mynovski Particle generators that negated radar. It would just be her luck to get shot down by an antiquated radar guided SAM. Once she had her bearings, she dropped her fighter nearly to sea level.

She pulled out a paper with the latest weather report. She'd have to swing a little wide Bermuda, as there was a tropical storm forming there.

* * *

"So, Jumian? What do you think of the forces that I've gathered for our attack?" Commander Kyle Hynes asked from his command chair on the Gow Assault Transport.

"It isn't the amount of battleships that is going to make a difference," his aide reminded him. "It's the strategy to get close enough to Jaburo's defenses undetected which is the most important part." And besides, we're attacking with less than half of the normal forces.

"Which is why we are so dependent on our spies," Hynes grumbled, rubbing his graying hair. He still fit his Zeon military uniform quite well, he thought. Even if he was getting older. He wasn't yet fifty.

"The defense around Jaburo are too strong for a conventional force to win with any great certainty. That's why we have to try for the knife in the back. With the knowledge of the patrol patterns and with the people at the key stations watching our approach, we should hopefully be able to get close enough to send in the Zaku." Captain Jumian hated Hynes with a passion he never dared show. The commander had no idea of how to use his forces properly. How he had managed to keep his position? He was such a fool.

"Incoming!" a technician suddenly screamed.

Krak-thoooom! A white and red fighter streaked by the front of the Gow blazing away with its light beam cannons.

Jumian stared at the retreating fighter in consternation. "I thought our spy said there wasn't going to be a patrol out here?"

The jaunty little fighter suddenly spewed flares that rocketed into the air, even as it turned on a dime. "Forward batteries, kill that fighter before we've lost our element of surprise," Hynes shouted. He didn't want to be on the under-strength side in a botched sneak attack.

The gunnery officer shouted, "Ready, aim, fire!" Particle beams and machinegun-cannons opened up, trying to hit the minor threat that was going to ruin their operation.

"We've already lost our... My God! Nothing is that maneuverable!" Jumian exclaimed.

The Core Fighter in front of them danced with angels of plasma and missiles, death kissing it but leaving it only scorched.

"Is that a... New Type?" one of the pilots of the Gow asked in awe.

Hynes just stared. New Types was just Zeon propaganda. And they wouldn't be in a Federation fighter ruining his grand strategy. "Nonsense! It's just a hot pilot that took his fighter out for a quick spin."

"Our weapon-fire is unable to pin it down and destroy it," a communications specialist said a little louder than necessary. As if that wasn't obvious from the mass confusion outside.

Hynes slammed his fist down. "It's just one fighter. Can't any of your remember you basics? Engage firing pattern Delta and blow that tin can out of the air!" His face was blotchy and red. High Command was not going to be happy that one fighter was causing this catastrophe.

Jumian nodded, surprised at his commanding officer's initiative. "All ships, initiating Attack Pattern Delta! That will finish it off. It would take an act of God for a single fighter to survive that much firepower."

God must have been listening with his pen, paper and seal. That one fighter seemed to know when it was going to be fired on, when it would be sliding into a lethal bracket of furious firepower that would have slain it, if it had followed the normal patterns of evasion.

"New Type!" Jumian said softly.

"We have incoming! Fifty fighters closing in thirty seconds!"

"Kill that fighter! Kill it," Commander Kyle Hynes shouted.

"We need to signal retreat!" his aide shouted. "We can't stand up to a fully mobilized defense!"

"If I leave now without even firing a shot, I will never command again!" his commander said. His face had gone very pale.

"Commander!" Jumian felt real panic. This wouldn't be a rout; it would be a massacre if they pressed any closer to those heavy batteries and the fighters.

"Signal retreat. Sergeant, inform Commander Dozle Zabi that we have been repelled. Tell him... that I will submit a full report after the battle." Commander Hynes stood up and walked off the bridge. Unheard of that a commanding officer would leave in the middle of battle.

But all of them knew that he would never command again.

* * *

The mighty subterranean defenses of Jaburo let the jaunty little fighter let it enter the huge entrances into the great caverns that were the primary defense of the Federation's heart. This facility was not only the governmental headquarters, but also the manufacturing heart of its military. Jaburo had become famous during the unification wars before the Space Era had begun.

Juan and Krimer looked at the battered Core Fighter as it rolled to an unsteady landing in astonishment in accordance to air control. Juan, the darker and bigger technician, just shook his head as the engines whined down and the canopy popped open. The poor fighter had seen some serious action, being scorched across almost all of its armor.

Krimer suddenly squinted. "Hey, that's not one of ours from the 17th Air Wing. And I don't remember any incoming flights either."

The pilot waved and hopped to the ground, landing unsteadily. She doffed her helmet. "Sergeant Pierce of the 85th Tactical Unit here for a special inquiry." She saluted smartly. "Where can I go get cleaned up?"

Juan nodded towards a set of door. "Locker room is right there. Get one of the PFC's to lead you around."

After twenty minutes, Alex was as presentable as she was going to be in any reasonable time. Her dress uniform was a bit rumpled from traveling folded up in her carry on. If she could only get a few minutes sleep. She shook the sleep out of her head.

PFC Mills led her to the administration building, deep underground in the mighty caves of Jaburo Headquarters. Alex checked her watch discreetly. Ten minutes to spare as she entered the room that the hearing was going to be held in. The room was severe and foreboding. The Military Police were armed with pistols and grim expressions.

During the next few minutes, more people arrived and sat down in the various seats. Four strict looking soldiers of higher rank sat at the high table. The center one picked up a gravel and banged it. "Bring in the accused."

Alex blinked in surprise as Captain Wills was led into the room in manacles. She sat at the defense consuls table, trying to look as calm as she possibly could.

The lead officer, who Alex noted as a brigadier general, banged the gavel again. "The special inquiry into the assault and shooting of Sergeant Julio Huros will now commence. Be aware that this court does have all wartime powers granted us by the Federation. Captain Athena Wells, how do you plead in these charges."

Athena stood up. "Not guilty, General Irrs." She waited for him to signal that she should sit down.

"According to the records that we have from the battle you were in, Huros and yourself came into a conflict of authority. After the battle you were found over his bleeding corpse, your smoking gun in your hand. Could you explain this circumstance?"

The military lawyer whispered to Athena, but she shook her head and stood up. "General Irrs? To explain this situation, I must bring up matters of Alpha-Top-Secrecy."

"Very well. Only officers cleared for Alpha-Top-Secrets can remain. Milton? Could you escort the rest out of here to the waiting room?"

This matter took a few minutes. Alex was quite surprised when she presented her papers and credentials that she was allowed to stay. She gulped as she checked over her records to realize she was privy to much more than she had ever expected.

"Milton? Why is that Sergeant still in this room?" a colonial sitting at the desk said loudly.

"Her records are verified as having Alpha-Top-Secret clearance, sir!" the military police officer barked right back.

"I am aware of everyone in Jaburo that has such a high clearance. Sergeant! Stand and identify yourself," the thin, nasally colonial snapped out.

Captain Wills seemed quite relieved when she saw who was being interrogated.

Alex hopped to her feet. "Sergeant Alexis Pierce of the 85th Tactical Unit, sir!" she replied loudly while saluting as crisply as she could.

"Pierce?" Irrs asked. "Colonial Anderson, I was under the impression that she was not going to be able to make it until later."

Anderson looked flushed as he showed a hint of uncertainty. "Sergeant, would you care to explain how you managed to make it from the European Quadrant to headquarters in such a... timely manner?" His voice carried a hidden hint of anger now.

Speaking carefully and quite aware of the hidden pitfalls that were opening around her, she replied, "I had not made it to the European Quadrant, Sir! I interpreted my orders to mean that I was to use the resources available to myself to make all haste to be her. I requisitioned the spare Core Fighter for my Gundam and flew it directly here, sir!" Alex was very tense now. She could almost feel the antipathy coming from Anderson.

"Are you saying that you flew a Core Fighter all the way from the North American quadrant?" General Irrs asked.

"No, sir! My orders did not reach me until I was almost halfway to Europe. I launched enroute and came here as directly as I could. I did run into that Zeon battle fleet forty-five minutes away from Jaburo. That did cause a small delay, sir!" Alex was now _very_ awake and nervous.

There was a murmur from the officers at the table. "Are you trying to say that _you_ were the pilot that spotted that fleet sneaking up to Jaburo during their diversionary attack?" Anderson asked incredulously.

"If I may speak frankly?" At the nod, she continued, "I just happened to be in the right place at the right time. After lighting off my flares I was pinned down by their fire. I was only able to withdraw after our fighters got there."

"Withdraw? Are you telling us that you faced the firepower of an entire battle fleet and escaped unscathed?" Irrs asked. "According to your records, you have only two hours flight experience."

"About twelve hours at this point, really. I think my Core Fighter needs some work, but I don't think I was actually hit-"

A major at that table suddenly stood up and slammed his hands on the table. "This has nothing to do with the case at hand! Can we please get back to the matter of this court martial?"

"Major Enton, this is an inquiry into a shooting. Not a court martial. I would remind you to remember that. Very well, Captain Wills, let's get this hearing in motion again." General Irrs looked quite irritated now.

"Thank you, general. This matter is an Alpha-Top-Secret. After the second battle of Colorado Springs, Sergeant Major Huros approached me upon matters of chain of authority. I informed him that my command to release Sergeant Pierce to follow her instincts in the midst of the battle was my prerogative. He demanded that I explain the situation more fully, so that he could understand my decision. He appeared to be upset and agitated. I informed him of the Top Secret level of this knowledge and that Sergeant Pierce appeared to have New Type potential and at that point, he became even more agitated and angry, saying that Pierce was nothing but a 'snot-nosed' kid. At this point, I believe that Huros was going to compromise an Alpha-Top-Secret. I pulled out my gun to arrest him, he grabbed for my gun and it went off." Captain Wills laid her hands down on her folder.

They called up the black-box recorders of the battle from the Gundam and the GMs. They verified what they could from that information that Huros did appear to be angry at the undermining of 'his' authority. They even had a blurry view of the alteration from the Mobile Suit hanger, too. But it was a bad angle and too far away.

"Sergeant Pierce, come forward." Irrs waited until she was seated at the witness stand. "Sergeant Pierce, please tell us as best as possible what happened just after the 2nd battle of Colorado Springs."

"We had just got out of our Mobile Suits and were going to head back to the barracks to clean up. I was going to write my post-battle report. Captain Wills stopped Sergeant Major Huros from berating me for following my instincts and tried to establish her authority to Huros. We were dismissed and we left."

Anderson cut in with a tight smile. "So, Captain Wills was shielding you from Huros because of your questionable actions during that battle?"

"She was reasserting her position as commanding officer in our tactical squad, sir." Alex shuddered slightly at the uneasy feelings she was getting from Colonial Anderson.

"Intelligence is wondering how such a rank amateur could have racked up an impressive list of kills with only two weeks of training. Three Zaku and two Rickdoms. And, of course, three Gow transports and several fighters. These are the abilities of an ace fighter pilot with much experience. Not a rookie."

"I don't know what you want me to say, sir. I don't know if I believe in this New Type stuff. All I know is... I can feel things. Where the enemy is going to attack from, when they are pulling their triggers. I don't know what to make of it." Alex looked around nervously. "Frankly, it terrifies me."

"You are dismissed. This hearing will be adjourned after a brief recess." General Irrs banged the gavel.

Alex started to walk up to the guards around Athena but backed off quickly when she saw them tense. "Er, sorry."

She decided to grab a quick meal at the lunchroom. A private found her there an hour later, worrying fretfully about the strange captain that she realized she trusted and even liked a bit.

Back in the courtroom after the hearing called to order, General Irrs stood up. "It is the opinion of this panel that we find Captain Athena Wills to have acted properly and within the guidelines of her command in this situation. We have recommended that she be reinstated to her position and returned to her command post-haste. That is all."

Captain Wills breathed out a sigh of relief as the guard released her.

"Reporting for duty, Captain Wills!" Alex said with a smile as she saluted.

Athena returned her salute. "Well, Sergeant. I guess you better bring me back up to date on our tactical unit. Let's find an empty conference room."

It only took them a few minutes to find said room. "We should be fine in here. What happened after Huros decided to lose control of himself?"

"I was ordered to destroy the remaining Gow and its escorts. We lost Nick there but managed to finish the mission. We've been getting ready to ship out to Europe. I was actually in transit when my order to show up here arrived. So I flew my Core Fighter and, er, kind of started a battle with a Zeon fleet that was sneaking up on Jaburo." Alex looked a bit abashed at that.

"You _started_ a battle?" Athena laughed at that. "Alex, you are a troublemaker, aren't you? I hope that someone figures that out so that you get properly rewarded." She turned serious. "You are seeing more, aren't you?"

The sandy-haired sergeant nodded woefully. "I don't know what's causing it. It is like I'm becoming more sensitive to other people. I could feel when the commander of the Gow was setting up his guns and fighters to wipe me out when I was running along the tops of them. And I knew that this battle-group was sneaking in to attack Jaburo. And I could feel when they were going to shoot at me."

"That is quite interesting-"

"What sort of inhuman monster am I becoming," Alex shouted. She seemed on the verge of panicking.

"Monster? I just see a young woman that seems to becoming psychically active. This New Type phenomena seems to be something old and forgotten that we are on the verge actually understanding. And maybe, with your help, something that we will take for granted in another ten to twenty years."

"I don't know, Captain."

Athena smiled softly. "Well, any ways, we need to get back to our job. Our tactical unit is being assigned to the European front?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Then let's get the quickest way there that _isn't_ a core booster."

* * *

"At ease." Captain Wills walked up the row of the 85th Tactical Squadron in a briefing room. "For those of you who aren't aware, I am Captain Athena Wills. I understand that some of you," she gave two of the older men in the group a hard look, "may think that I do not understand what to do with the mobile suits that our squad has been assigned."

"Lose that attitude quickly. The 85th has a job to do and I'll see that it does it. Does anyone not understand?" she yelled at them.

"No, Sir!" the 85th yelled back.

"Sergeant Pierce is my second in command. She has proven herself capable of field command and has the proper abilities to keep you idiots alive, if you listen to her."

One of the older pilots had a look on his face that was almost comical, but had the good sense to keep his mouth shut.

"Sergeant Kerr, do you have something to add?" Athena asked.

"Sergeant Pierce has not had extensive field exposure, Sir!"

"And you, of course, have three years command experience. How many confirmed kills have you had, Kerr?"

"I have shot down ten fighters and bagged a Zaku, sir!"

"Sergeant Pierce has _already_ bagged eight Mobile Suits and dozens of fighters, Kerr. In three battles. She bagged more 'bad-guys' than you in one battle. The Federation needs that talent and I'm not going to wait for her to mature '_more' _for command."

Alex winced at that. She hoped that Athena knew what she was doing. The implications for her future career were not pleasant if she had read this wrong.

Jonas Kerr looked pole-axed at his new captain's pronouncement. "Ace already? You have to be kidding?"

"No. Not even slightly. You are our second best mobilesuit pilot after her, so you are going to be partnered for this next mission." Athena strode up to the front of the conference room and pointed at the screen with her pen-laser. "And this is the objective we have been assigned. The Danube manufacturing complex."

Tim raised his hand and asked. "Why aren't they just bombing that into rubble?"

Athena almost rolled her eyes. "Because we need it intact. Not only does it have valuable information on the enemy mobilesuit production, it can crank out a three mobilesuits each day. If we can capture it, we'll be able to increase the Federation's ability to produce more mobilesuits by fifteen percent. That's why General Brown has ordered that we take out its defenses using our tactical squad. The six of us should be able to get into the base quick enough to take out the command bunker."

She changed the screen to show the bunker. "The weather is cooperating. No snow in the assault zone is predicted. We will neutralize their anti-aircraft here and here..."

* * *

The 85th Tactical Unit 'crept' up on their forward positions. The seven mobilesuits were painted a muted white and blue that did not stand out as much as the previous schemes had. The bare trees attested to the fact that winter was not far off.

In her suit, Alex felt a feeling of dread build up. But it didn't seem to be coming from anywhere in particular. At least, not yet. Why couldn't this ability be useful?

They were on tight-beam laser coms at this point. On her communication screen, Tim appeared.

"Hey, Alex? What's up?" On his own screen, Alex looked pale and worried to him.

"I don't know. I've got a bad feeling."

Images started to flash through her mind in staccato fashion, almost overwhelming her.

_Tim had just a moment to scream before his GM exploded._

Blink.

Athena's GM had its legs shot out from underneath her as the rest of the Tactical Squad retreated. In a dank cell, electronic torture devices were attached to her until she started telling everything and anything to stop the pain.

Blink.

Alex's Gundam managed to take out the two Zaku threatening her old team-mates, but a shot from another managed to pierce the containment of Kerr's GM, exploding spectacularly. The entire squad was either captured or killed.

Blink.

Another death of Spike and Athena caused by her saving Tim.

Blink.

Athena cut in suddenly. "What sort of bad feeling?"

In his GM's cockpit, Kerr just mouthed Alex's words sardonically. He was barely keeping an eye out ahead of himself.

"We're surrounded! It's a trap!" Alex suddenly screamed out. Her face was literally covered in a sweat from her fear and indecision. "We have to escape!" She pushed her Gundam towards the ridge line behind them in great leaps and bounds. Suddenly, a Zaku stood up in front of her, only to be blasted down by her beam rifle.

_There was only one path that she could see that would save her and her teammates._

The 85th Tactical Unit almost froze but Alex's words had the desired affect. "Follow her! That's a direct order!" Athena shouted.

Lyle Kumasi almost smashed his fist into his console on his Rik Dom as the Fed Mobile Suits suddenly charged the weakest line of his encircling force. The lead suit had just killed Mattie Dumo, a confirmed veteran! "Attack! Attack now!'

The Zaku and Rik Doms went into action, their plan to trap the federation squad still intact. Blistering crossfire would pound them down. Either they would die or they would be captured. There was no escape. But Lyle had to wonder how they knew to avoid the minefield up ahead.

The Zeon weapon fire was damaging all of their enemy's mobilesuits, but not dropping any of them. That should be possible, but it _was happening_. The Gundam was doing an impossible job of taking the brunt of the damage. Its shield was in tatters, it's armor cracked and fracturing. But vulcans and particle beams blasted grenades and rockets out of the sky.

It just would not fall!

"Captain Wills! Get everyone out! Don't come back for me no matter what! This is the only way!" Alex shouted even as her Gundam shuddered under another attack. "I will be fine! I promise!"

"Alex?" Athena shouted, spinning her GM around just in time to see Zaku machine gun fire pushing the Gundam back in a drunken stagger. A Rik Dom beam rifle's shot burned her gun arm off.

"We have to retreat!" Tim yelled as he worked his damaged GM backwards while firing his beam pistol.

Athena bit her lip hard enough to draw blood. "Fall back!" She slammed the flare launcher controls, sending up emergency flares. That was the signal for fighter support to extract them. The mission was a total wash anyways.

Moments later, Core Fighters streaked into range and unleashed heat seeking missiles, dangerous but effective, as it knocked the ambush back on its heels long enough for the GMs to make the dubious cover of the surrounding hills.

Captain Athena Wills shattered a nonessential gauge in her cockpit. "Someone is going to pay! We were sold out, men!"

All of the pilots were shocked, but it made too much sense. There was a traitor in their midst.

* * *

Colonial Sunia just shook his head at the wreckage. "Sergeant Kumasi. I thought you promised that this ambush would net us that entire MS Squad that the Feddies were sending in?" He leaned up against his armored hover car and took out a cigarette.

"It should have, Colonial. I don't know how they figured it out, but they knew not to head into our wired mines." Wired mines that would only have gone off after they were all in the field. "Even so, our fallback plan netted us a Gundam."

"That plan was supposed to be able eliminate them all too!" he shouted as he stood up suddenly into subordinate's face. He turned to and walked over to the mecha in question. "How are you coming in extracting the pilot?"

"Just got it, sir!" a technician standing on the torso of the Gundam shouted. Surprisingly, for the damage it had taken, the mobilesuit looked quite repairable.

He hit a hidden switch and the cockpit opened up. Three soldiers tensed to fire at the pilot, only to realize that he must be unconscious. A smashed view screen attested to how that happened.

"The pilot is alive! And out of it!" one of the Zeon soldiers shouted down.

"What is the rank?" Colonial Junia yelled back. He eyed the Gundam thoughtfully.

"Sergeant!"

He sighed. "Sergeant Kumasi, see to our guests interrogation. I will be heading to HQ to report about this debacle. I might be able to talk fast enough that you won't lose your recent promotion!" He climbed into his armored hover-jet and signaled the pilot to take off. In moments, they were winging their way off to the east.

Lyle Kumasi just clenched his fists. Junia was the worst sort of officer. Always taking credit for others and assigning blame for his own failures. Lyle turned towards the almost shattered Gundam. But surprisingly enough this time, there was no one to really blame in the ranks. The Feddies just failed to fall into the trap correctly.

Their spy, on the other hand, at the local Federation Base must have sold them out. So he would pay for his double treachery.

* * *

Alex groaned in pain as she awoke. Her thoughts were woozy, drugged. The lights from the curtained windows were almost blinding.

"Here, drink this," a female voice stated. Gentle hands helped her gulp down a drink. "You are very lucky. The rest of your squad is still out there. Sergeant Lyle really needs information about what happened. I'll go get him."

"Sergeant Pierce. Thank you, nurse. This is confidential information, you will have to leave." Lyle Kumasi smiled. While technically illegal, he had to get all the information he could out of this pilot. Wearing the uniform of the enemy might net him information he needed to keep his neck out of the noose that was tightening its way there. "It looks like your file has been misplaced. Here, fill out these forms."

Alex winced but nodded. She took the clipboard and started to fill out the forms. It looked like her old recruitment forms from six months ago. Odd.

"Tell me about the ambush," Lyle said. "Why did you wait so long before trying to escape it?"

"Didn't wait, sir. I only realized it was a trap just about a minute before they attacked." Throbbing pain drummed in her temples.

"You were operating under radio silence, hoping to sneak on the base!" The Zeon officer was shocked. They didn't know it was a trap until...

"I... _saw_ it happening just before they hit us. Little flashes of how the squad was going to die depending on my actions."

"New Type," Lyle muttered in awe.

"That's what Captain Wills thinks..." Alex blinked as if she were thinking very hard. He hadn't given her any identification or clearance. None. She started to frantically tear up the papers she had half finished filling out. "Damn trick," she muttered.

Strong hands stopped her. "Sorry, Alexis. But you are suddenly far too valuable. You are going to Paris now."

* * *

Alex winced as she was moved out of the armored vehicle. It had only been a few days since her capture. Her head was still throbbing as she was pulled forward into a French mansion. She vaguely thought it might have been a palace for their old kings. The guards led her inside the side entrance and down the opulent halls filled with tapestries and archaic arms and weapons.

"Move it, Feddie," one of the soldiers barked as he slammed the butt of his rifle into her back, sending her sprawling into the well appointed dining room. Luckily, the soft carpet cushioned her fall.

She pulled herself to her feet, blue eyes smoldering in anger. Bastard. They were all bastards.

"Tsk tsk. I'm shocked at you, Kumasi. Release her so that we may discuss things in a more civilized manner," a higher ranking Zeon soldier said from across the table. He was stocky, but only in his late thirties.

Alex looked around carefully. It had only been a few days, but she had kept her eyes open for chances to escape. Not that any chance had appeared. It did look like they felt she was a very important prisoner. She rubbed her wrist appreciatively as she was removed from the manacles. "Sergeant Alexis Pierce - PX40210B."

"General Kluz Doman. Please, let's dispense with the histrionics. We could be treating you much worse than we are," the general said as he waved her over to the waiting chair.

Cautiously, she sat down. "You won't make me betray the Federation!"

Kluz raised an eyebrow at that. "They have already betrayed the precepts that they supposedly stand for."

"And the Zeon are paragons of virtue that would never use chemical warfare, nuclear weapons or colony drops against civilian targets," she retorted savagely. She bit off her comment and stared directly ahead of herself.

The general pulled out a dossier. "Supposedly you are a powerful 'New Type', with powerful precognitive abilities." He waited for her to respond, which she failed to do. "From your paperwork, it shows that you are from Idaho in the North American Quadrant. Have you ever been into space?"

Alexis stared ahead of herself resolutely. She wasn't going to give them any more information.

Kluz sighed. "I have no desire to turn this nasty, but I must have this information." He hit a button on his intercom. "David, bring in Mrs. Pierce."

Alex's eye widened. She snatched a quick glance at the doorway where two soldiers were leading an older woman with an obvious resemblance to herself lay. "You bastard," she muttered hollowly. They must have snatched her mother during a raid. The North American Quadrant was not heavily controlled by either side at this point.

"Will you cooperate?" he asked harshly.

Mutely, Alex nodded. She didn't see any way out now.

"Let's start off with the easy part," Sergeant Kumasi said as he started this interview with Alexis. He was in a bleak looking office with no windows deep within the mansion.

Alex just nodded shortly. She fidgeted with her manacles.

"How did you become involved in the Federation New Type Program and what is its name?" Lyle asked pleasantly.

"I volunteered for the Pilot's Academy about six months ago and was tasked with being trained for the Mobiles Suits that we just developed. During my first combat, I performed very well. So well that I caught attention at head quarters. They sent out an officer to take command of the squad I was assigned to." Alex paused uncertainly. "My next combat was to defend Colorado Springs against Zeon Mobile Suits. My performance had increased even more." She paused again, then swallowed. "I destroyed several Mobile Suits and the Gow carriers."

"_You_ destroyed the carriers?" the interrogator asked.

"Most of them. I think the fighters downed one of them. I just _knew_ that I could charge up that mountainside and jump on top of the Gows. After I managed to survive that, I was sent to destroy the surviving units of that attack force. Then I was assigned to the European front. Where I fell to a Zeon ambush." Alex watched him carefully. She wasn't technically lying, but there really wasn't a Federation New Type project or anything. At least officially.

"That's it?"

"Well, we only have theories and my flashes of intuition to go by," she responded.

"And what is that theory?" Lyle asked as he scribbled on a piece of form.

"I read up on Zeon New Type propaganda and I don't match what they call a New Type. I'm no evolutionary product of the space age, enlightened or anything else. I'm just a normal person that _might_ have a bit of the second sight. Uh, that's what my mother calls it," Alex responded slowly.

"So New Types are just psychics?"

"Well, so far as we can tell. It's not like I came with some sort of users manual for super powers, you know." Alex shrugged diffidently. So far she'd been able to avoid mentioning that Minovski particles seemed to be related with this odd ability.

"Why don't you think you are a product of the space age?" he asked.

"I've never been into space. I wanted to, when I was younger. I even joined the school military placement program for officers. I wanted to become a pilot. Maybe get my own freighter and visit the colonies." She looked away to stare at a blank wall.

"Well, maybe your parents..."

"No, my father was a farmer and my mother can't stand the thought of leaving the farm either. They were Seclusianists and opposed the expansion of humans into outer space. And they weren't nearly as reactionary as their own parents had been."

Lyle just stared at her in shock. There were people that actually believed that?

Alex smiled wanly. "I don't believe that, of course. You wouldn't believe some of the fights that my mother and I got into about it. She definitely didn't like me joining up with the military." She glared at the Zeon officer suddenly. "But someone has to stand up to your atrocities."

"We're not here to discuss political differences. We're here to discuss what you know." Lyle made a scribble on his notepad.

"I don't really know a lot," she noted in reply. "The Federation merely happened into this, as far as I know. But I'm just a _very_ newly promoted sergeant. So I don't know much at all."

Sergeant Lyle Kumasi just smiled. "Well, let's see what technical information you can tell us about your Mobilesuit. It's called a Gundam, correct?"

"My Gundam?" she asked in muted shock. "Yes, it's called a Gundam."

"It seems like quite the mobilesuit, in a generalist matter. Very high performance and a very interesting armor that we haven't figured out how to duplicate."

"Um, it can sure take a wallop or two. And it's a lot higher performing than the GM's, I guess. I don't know how good it is in comparison to your mobilesuits. I think it is faster though." How the hell was she going to not reveal classified secrets about this? She was already a traitor for what she was let slipping.

"How is the armor created?" he asked.

"No real idea. I just know it's expensive. A lot more than the regular armor that the GMs use."

"Let's go take a look then. You can explain some things to us."

She didn't meet his eyes. "I'll try, sir. When can I meet my mother?"

"After we're satisfied that you are assisting us. And if you really upset us, it won't be you that suffers. Understand?"

"Yes, sir."

* * *

Alex was shown into her mother's quarters. Not quite a cell, but bars at the windows were a significant reminder that they were both prisoners. "Mother?"

Irene Pierce looked up at the entrance. "Alexis? What have you gotten yourself caught up in?" She scooped up her daughter into a tight embrace.

"You were right, going into the military was going to bring grief to our family. I'm so sorry." The younger woman fought back her sob, though tears shown in her eyes.

"I let my personal fear guide my sight, Alexis. I knew that if you left the farm, that you would do great things. But I also saw that I wouldn't live past the war."

"What! Mother!" Alex tightened her grip around her mother. Their difference in size was quite noticeable. She nearly towered over the older woman.

"Alexis Pierce! You are a strong young woman. Stronger than I could ever be." She lowered her voice to a whisper. "I will not live to see another sunset. You must find a way to escape in your beloved armor. Somehow."

The door banged open suddenly. "This visit is over," a young officer stated. "Don't try to hide what you say from us. We would consider it bad faith on the current situation. That will have... negative repercussions on Mrs. Pierce."

Three soldiers grabbed her and roughly dragged her away. Tears leaked from her eyes, distorting her view of her smiling mother.

* * *

Alex sat in her room in the darkness. She stared out the barred windows, seeing nothing of the fantastic gardens they overlooked. Suddenly, a presence started to intrude on her consciousness. She could feel it slowly creeping up to her locked door, where two guards were posted.

Acting on instinct, she moved to the door and pressed her back up against the wall next to it. She heard the muffled thud of a body hitting the floor and the zapping sounds of a tazer. A rescue? But the overwhelming feeling from the other side of the door was not of rescue, but of murderous intent.

The door finally creaked open. A darkly garbed figure crept into the room, a silenced pistol at the ready. Alex's strong fingers suddenly reached out to grip and twist the wrist that held the gun. Her knee was already smashing into the intruder's stomach. The young pilot pivoted and flipped the attacker onto their back with punishing force.

She lashed out with several full strength punches. After getting her breathing under control, she flipped on desk lamp. It illuminated the bruised face that looked vaguely familiar. "What did I ever do to you?" she muttered. She quickly dragged one of the guards into her room and stripped him from his uniform. With a grimace of distaste, she quickly donned the uniform that was only a little loose over her own uniform. She headed out into the hallway and towards where her mother was kept.

She had barely turned the corner when she heard a cry of alarm. She pulled her helmet down lower over her eyes and headed up the stairs as quickly as possible. The darkness made the suits of armor and tapestries into chasms of darkness that she could hide within. She fought that urge and continued to move. She'd have to come back for her mother, somehow. Lights were coming on downstairs. Flickering images were starting to overlay her sight again. She almost staggered drunkenly up to the fourth floor, clutching her head. Fewer options were now available, but only one seemed to grant her any chance of escaping. She opened a door and followed her instincts to the large windows.

Opening it up, she saw a discouraging sign, the green of an armored shoulder of a Zaku. It was only a few feet away... and a little below her. She opened the window and looked around quickly. The Zaku was kneeling and scanning for possible attack. Alex took a deep breath suddenly and then launched herself to land on the mobilesuit.

How was she going to get from here to the entry hatch in the middle of the Zaku's chest? She worked her way in front of the 'head' and looked down below. She saw a flicker of light, dim orange for just a moment. Alex grinned like a wolf. The pilot actually had his door open while taking a smoke break. A sudden sense of urgency nearly overwhelmed her. She had to act now!

She thumped onto her rear and slid down the curved front, almost paralyzed with fear. A fall in the dark would be fatal. She shifted to the left suddenly and bent her knees, just as she hit the open hatch that looked like a high tech drawbridge. She was already spinning around towards the surprised pilot with a double-fisted hit to his neck that sent him tumbling off into the darkness with a muted cry. Her protesting legs nearly collapsed even as she forced herself to tumble into the cockpit.

"Edward! Seal up, man! The prisoner just got loose!" the radio squawked. She had barely gotten into the mobilesuit in time!

Alex fumbled the headset on as she cycled the hatch closed. She found the slightly different radio controls. She tapped the button down while saying, "Right," in as low voice as possible and coughed. She then tried to figure out how to power up the mobile suit to full power.

"You need to stop smoking, man. Those things are going to be the death of you sometime." There was a long pause. "Ed?" the man on the other side of the radio called out.

Alex ignored him. It was obvious that the Federation engineers had copied the Zaku's controls extensively, except where it was obvious that something was in a stupid place. The startup switches were just out of reach and set vertically, but in the same general area.

"Hey, Ed? Why are you powering up?"

The Federation pilot jockeyed her controls, then stood the mobilesuit up while buckling into the chair.

Suddenly, she had a flash of premonition stronger than anything she had ever felt before. Her mother and General Doman were yelling when a gunshot suddenly rang out. In seemingly slow motion, she saw her mother fall to the ground. Kluz Doman lowered his smoking pistol.

Alex screamed mentally.

"ED! What the hell do you think you are doing?" the voice on the radio yelled out.

Her lips turned up in a snarl suddenly. She turned on her friend and foe scanner to target the other Zaku and then manually turned it off. Outside, her Zaku suddenly turned around and raised its heavy machine gun and fired the length of the house to shoot at the other Zaku that was guarding the other corner of the mansion. It was totally unprepared for that and its gun arm and head were sheared off by the hail of bullets.

She flicked on her radio. "For Freedom! For the Federation! _Forever!_" she shouted into the radio, anger clouding her thoughts. They had killed her mother. So they would all pay. She clicked off the radio. She suddenly pushed the Zaku into a leaping run towards the military base just fifteen miles away

"What the hell was that?" came a new voice over the radio. "Malcom? Richards? Report!"

Alex tapped some controls on the power plant limiters. The Zaku's power plant started to over heat, but that would boost its output for fifteen minutes. She started taking deep breaths, feeling the inimical presence of enemies up ahead.

The two Zeon mobilesuit pilots in their Zaku's were shocked when Alex's Zaku came shooting out from the trees as quickly as a Rik Dom. Alex unleashed a tight burst of machinegun bullets into the first Zaku even as the huge feet of her mobilesuit slammed into the other one. She stepped back and emptied a single shot into the cockpit of it. She then spun and turned, charging towards the hanger where her Gundam was being kept.

She took out her heat-axe and chopped through the support struts for the armored door and then kicked it in. Screams of panic from the technicians were ignored as Alex moved her Zaku in front of her repaired and repainted mobilesuit. She opened her own hatch and was about to exit the Zaku when a grenade bounced between her feet.

With a surge of adrenaline, she dove into the Gundam just as the grenade went off. Jagged pain clawed at her left thigh. She smacked her head into one of the control screens, shattering it and knocking herself silly for a minute.

"Did we get that pilot?" someone asked from outside.

"I don't know. Max! Get up there and put a bullet in his head for his troubles."

Alex whimpered in pain but dragged herself into the pilot seat. Her blood made it slick to sit in. Even as she toggled the door closed and locked it, she stripped off her Zeon military shirt and wadded it up against the wound. The stolen Zaku was going to be exploding any minute!

She managed to shave thirty seconds off of her fastest power on time, but the Gundam was not cycling smoothly. With an oddly churning noise, she started to get it to move off, even as she watched the power plant closely.

The Gundam's shield had been a total loss, but her beam cannon and beam saber had been repaired. She knew they didn't have the armor repaired with the original Gundanium that it had, so she couldn't depend on it for anything drastic.

She lowered the Gundam into a charge at the other door, whipping out the beam saber and chopping through the supports. With a horrendous crash and a _very_ worrisome cough from her power plant, she actually made it two hundred yards before the cataclysmic explosion of the dying Zaku destroyed the mobilesuit hanger and the remaining mecha.

She immediately pointed the Gundam northwest and set it moving it a quick, loping gait. Even as the Gundam jerked and moved, she grabbed for the emergency medical kit. It was a very sloppy pressure bandage and it left her hands covered in blood. She had to force her breath into more shallow intakes. She could be going into shock.

Somehow she had to hang on.


	3. Odessa

Sorrows

_Author's note: Just so people are aware, I started into the stories of Gundam with the three novels and then a smattering of the later series (083, 080, 08th). So my take of the UC Gundam universe is heavily influenced by those grim books with their psychic New Types. I was actually very appalled at the actual series and never managed to slog through them. Maybe the movie versions of Gundam will be more tolerable. (I actually went 'didn't Amuro die in the One Year War?')_

-

Alex set her Gundam on auto-walk for a minute. She had to stop the worst of her bleeding or she wouldn't last an hour. With shaking fingers, she ripped ragged strips of cloth of the Zeon uniform she had already wadded up against it and inserted them into her wound. Another pressure bandage was applied hastily. Blood soaked fingers took the control yokes with trembling fingers.

-

Ten minutes later, her breathing filled the Gundam's cockpit, pained and ragged. The controls in front of her wavered in and out of focus.

_"Momma! Look at the flowers!" a very young Alexis called out as she ran into the old cabin. Her mother scooped her up with a laugh._

Alexis Pierce grit her teeth and forced her eyes open. She opened the little medical kit of the Gundam, under her seat. It took three attempts to pick up an emergency adrenaline ampule. With a sudden jerk, she slammed it into her leg hard enough to trigger it. Her eyes went wide as the drugs hit her system. Her heart rate spiked.

_"Why did Daddy have to leave?" a slightly older Alexis asked, looking away from a small tombstone in the family graveyard up the hill from the old cabin._

_"God needed him to watch over you from heaven, honey," her mother said sadly._

"GRRRRAAAAAAAAA!" she shouted. She wasn't going to die. Her mother's life was not going to be thrown away, wasted for her own worthless one. Dials and LED readouts wavered in her sight. She forced herself, with gritted teeth, to stay working. Walking, navigating, checking her power-plant. She had definitely down something very bad to it starting it like she had again. She just hoped it would keep working.

A buzzing finally intruded on her. She stared stupidly at the laser com signal for a full minute. She finally remembered to turn on the receiver. Federation codes were implemented.

"Unknown Gundam, you are ordered to stand down. Shut down your system or we will fire upon you. This is your last warning!" the male voice said authoritatively over the short range radio.

She fumbled for the com, switching on her transmitter. "I surrender! I surrender!" she called out hoarsely even as she stopped her advance. "I need a medic."

-

Athena Wills stormed into the hospital. "Where is she?" she demanded.

Timothy Larson and Spike Montoya followed quickly behind her.

A nurse walked up and intercepted her. "Sgt. Pierce is still in surgery. It was touch and go, but I think she is past the worst of it," he said. "From what we can tell, she got hit by some shrapnel from a grenade."

"And what is he doing here?" Athena said tightly, pointing at a soldier wearing Captain rank chevrons who was staring at the operating theater.

"He's from Fleet Intelligence-"

Wills narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. "Thank you. Please let me know the moment she is out of surgery and awake." She set her shoulders squarely and over to the other intelligence officer. She stopped and looked back at the other two pilots. "Larson, Montoya? I need you to find something else to do for about an hour." She turned back to the other officer and saluted him. "Captain? I am Captain Wills and CO of the 85th Squadron."

With a grumble, Tim and Spike walked just a bit away towards the drink vending machine. "I guess we don't need to know," Spike muttered in complaint. Tim just chuckled.

With a tone just a meticulous edge from sneer, he saluted back. "Ah, Captain Wills. I hear you are still awaiting refit after your last... battle. I am here to take charge of Mrs. Pierce and transport her to headquarters for debriefing."

"May I see your orders?" she asked politely.

"I'm sorry, you do not have high enough clearance to view those orders. I have already cleared it with Major Thompson," he replied with a tight smile.

"That is not possible-" she started to say when he cut her off.

"So you want to be brought up on charges of insubordination, Captain?" he snapped back.

"No, sir. But it would be impossible for me not to have a high enough clearance to see you orders, as I have Alpha Top Secret class clearance."

The captain blinked, then lashed out with a punishing fist that caught her in the neck. Just thirty feet Tim spat out his coffee at that. He stared stupidly as the intelligence officer fumbled for his holstered pistol. With sudden determination, he started to move forward. As the gun was pulled, Tim reacted without instinctively and threw his cup of coffee right into the captain's face.

Spike was just spinning when saw that and yelled out stupidly, "He's going to shoot her!"

The assailant pawed at his eyes to get the stinging liquid out even as Tim did a perfect tackle, knocking them both to the ground. With a bang, the gun went off. Spike landed on top of the two, lashing out with his fists.

-

Alex looked up as Athena walked in. "Captain?" she asked softly. She was in quite a bit of pain, but she should be back on her feet in just a week. The wonders of modern medicine.

"Sergeant Pierce," she replied with a nod. "I have orders and directives from Jaburo." She handed the papers to the wounded soldier.

With trepidation, she opened them. Were they going to cashier her? Send her to prison for giving the enemy secrets. Alex started to read them, expecting her commanding officer to start explaining. Her forehead crinkled as she read further. "Are these orders correct?"

"Yes. You will answer to myself or Jaburo High Command directly. Someone within our own military is trying to... suborn you or eliminate you," Athena said as she looked out the window, hands behind her back. Her voice had turned very hard and cold. "Your loyalty to the Federation is beyond question."

"But I failed. I'm weak. They kidnapped my mother... forced me to explain things about the Gundam," the blonde-haired pilot said softly.

"We know about your mother. The 15th Armored regiment overtook the Paris governors' quarters last night. Her remains were recovered. The loss of their Mobilesuits that were supposed to be guarding it forced the Zeon to retreat eastward earlier than expected." The shorter woman turned abruptly. "Any soldier can be broken... with the right lever. From documents that we recovered from General Kluz Doman, it is quite apparent that you were in a very poor position and playing dumb. And he didn't have a high opinion of you, even if they thought you were a New Type."

"I don't know how- I don't trust myself!" she blurted out. Maybe if she didn't let herself feel anything any more. Make herself into a uncaring block of stone.

"You will. I promise you that," Athena declared looking Alex directly... eye to eye.

-

"Hey, Sarge! I hear they are going to be lettering you out of this glorified hospital soon! Got to love modern medicine!" Tim called out as he slipped into Alex's room.

Spike just gave Tim a gloweringly look. "We managed to sneak some hootch," he said, palming the small bottle.

Alex just grinned. "I probably shouldn't. They've got one more round of blood tests and I think I might get into a bit of trouble if they spot some alcohol in it!" Her grin faltered, as she thought back to her mother's own battles with the bottle. It had been especially bad after her father had died.

"No long faces!" Tim ordered. "We need you in tip top shape to keep us alive! Like you did at that Zeon base in Old Germany and in Fort Collins."

"Yup. Our lucky invincible angel! The Intel guys are still scratching their heads over that ambush in Old Germany. Damn Zeeks had us pegged six ways to Sunday in a corral with the warmed up branding-iron to say they owned our bitch asses!" Spike enthused, taking a swig of his moonshine he'd smuggled in. Waste not, want not!

"I think I'm growing taller and more hairy by the second. Soon I'll be one of those Texas Ranger that always get the bad guy," she said with a laugh.

Tim just smiled. "Ha! If only things were that simple! But we have to get past this war and to the peace. My sister needs a solar system where she can raise her kids! That's what I'm fighting for!"

"Hear hear!" Alex responded, holding up her little plastic cup of water to toast.

"Peace!" Tim cried out, echoed by Spike and Alex.

-

Alex sat with the 85th as the Medea Transport was carrying them further east towards the battlefront. She was being brought up to speed. The Brittania deployment, of which the 85th Squad was part of, had managed to overrun France and now in Eastern Europe after they had taken over the German base that she had been captured at weeks ago.

"Listen up, folks!" Captain Athena Wills called out. "We are being diverted to help defend a diversionary battleship, a Big Tray class ship. All that they have local is a single squad, the Experimental Unit."

"Experimental Unit?" Spike asked.

"A group of hot-shot pilots tasked by Jaburo to figure out tactics and strategy for using the new Mobilesuits," she explained. "They got the first GMs and a Gun Tank."

"I think we've done okay by ourselves," Alex said tentatively, trying to sound like her old forceful self. Tim gave her a worried look. She blocked out his feelings, the concern was just too painful to her psyche.

"Oh, yes. Very much so. Jaburo is quite please with our progress. We'll be making contact with a Big Tray class battleship in just a half an hour-" Athena continued, laying out their plan.

Once the Medea Transports landed, the 85th Tactical Squad started unloading their Mobile Suits. Lieutenant Matt Healy whistled as he saw the significant reinforcement. "Is that a Gundam?" he asked brightly. It looked a bit different than he'd expected. It didn't have the standard paint job for the RX-79(G) class. Where it was supposed to be dark blue, it was sky blue with gold highlights. Maybe it was one of the prototypes.

"That's the 85th Tactical Unit. They've been one of the other first units to help with tactical doctrine," Corporal Noel Anderson said as she looked up from some paperwork she was working on. "They have a very impressive record. I thought that a regular squad only rated a sergeant or lieutenant?"

"I've heard rumors that there's something special about this unit," Lt. Matt Healy said. "Or rather, there is _someone _special. A Zeon defector. A New Type."

"A New Type? I thought those were just something that the Zeon made up for propaganda?" Noel replied, sharing a worried glance with 03rd's maintenance tech.

"Lieutenant Healy? I am Captain Athena Wills," the shorter woman said as she walked up and saluted. Matt quickly saluted her back.

"I didn't think we'd get any reinforcements in time to save the Big Tray," Larry said from his cockpit of his GM. No Gun Tank for this mission was required. He was overlooking where the two officers were discussing tactics.

-

"The Rik Dom will dominate the field of battle! Your Zaku are relics!" the new Zeon lieutenant yelled out as he set his Rik Dom skimming towards the Big Tray. The two Goufs with him lifted off and sped ahead of his still ground based mecha on their skimmers.

The Foreign Legionnaire, Kim Bederstadt, just shook his head. "I guess we'll follow on the ground." Far in the back. Wouldn't want to steal someone's limelight, he thought with a snort.

The two Goufs were flying towards the Big Tray when the lead Gouf was sliced in half by some sort of beam weapon from a sky blue Gundam. The second Gouf was winged, knocking off his shoulder armor by a 30mm cannon shot by the sniper GM on the top of the Big Tray masquerading as General Revil's Big Tray, _The Unconquered. _

The Zeon were totally shocked, this was nothing like what they were expecting. Below them the wounded ground battleship in the valley opened fire with every cannon at its disposal. The few remaining tanks added their ineffectual fire, but it was the mass of Mobilesuits that were the overwhelming danger. There were five mobilesuits visible. FIVE!

"I'll show you the power of superior technology!" the pilot of the Rik Dom shouted as he skimmed around the rugged hills. "Your Federation pieces of junk are no match for Zeon technology!" He ignored the main battle tanks. Those Mobilesuits looked far more lethal. One of the GMs was slow to duck and his mega-bazooka shattered its entire right side.

"He's too fast! He got me!" Spike shouted in pain.

Ken swore as he heard the surviving Goulf pilot screaming for backup support from his Foreign Legion squad. He turned his Zaku of to the east and made line-of-sight to the flatbed trucks that had driven them to this location. "Contact base and tell them that the Big Tray has been severely reinforced. It must be a high priority defense point! Maybe some Federation leadership is in there!"

"Yes, sir!" was the startled reply.

"Men, follow me!" Ken shouted. His Zaku squad started to pound gravel towards the far off fight. "We'll show them that experience matters more than fancy new suits!"

2nd Lt. Matt Healey moved to support, firing a few shots at the Rik Dom while watching the Gouf zoom by overhead, trying to avoid being shot down. The Gouf leaped from his flying sled and slammed into the side of the Big Tray, where Athena met him, beam saber in hand. The Gouf barely blocked the beam saber with his heat sword for a split instant. The inferior weapon was melted, but did deflect the attack.

"Surrender! You are outclassed!" she shouted.

The Gouf pilot replied with his action, lashing out with his electrically charged whip, trying to incapacitate her. A quick double swiped of her GM's beam saber and she first disarmed him and then _disarmed_ him of his remaining arm. She then pointed the saber in the center of his stomach, where the pilot likely sat.

"I won't repeat myself again!" Athena said coldly.

The Gouf pilot opened his hatch, holding his hands up to signal his surrender.

That was when Ken and his two Zaku squad-mates arrived. Ken's eyes opened in surprise. They had already taken out the second Gouf? "Lay down some suppressing fire!" he shouted. The older Zaku's machine guns churned, sending GMs scattering.

The Rik Dom pilot was getting upset. The Feddie clowns were ruining his moment in history! He skidded sideways, surprising another GM pilot. Tim managed to block the beam saber with his shield for a second. Dropping his gun, he pulled his own saber, but the Rik Dom was already out of range.

"Dammit!" Tim shouted. That was when Ken sent him sprawling onto his face with his Zaku.

"Sorry, kid," Ken said, even as his heat axe slammed down. He triggered his jumpjets to leap away even as the GM exploded.

"TIM!" Alex shouted as her Gundam exploded over the Big Tray on flaming thrusters from her sniper position. Everything started throbbing and pulsing. Where there should have been the concern or pain from her friend... was nothing.

She twisted in mid-air to focus on the Zaku with the Zeon symbol on its forehead. It then ducked back in retreat behind the Rik Dom that was causing a problem to the rest of the squad. "Out of my way!" she screamed. In that one moment of hatred, she swept away all of her previous thoughts of not feeling her enemy's feelings. The enemy's presence in front of her pulsed and throbbed within her mind, even as her movements slammed into higher gear.

"You are too slow-" the Rik Dom pilot started to crow, when the Gundam slammed into the ground right in front of the Big Tray.

Three beams strobed from the beam rifle even as it rocketed forward, the backwash smashing it forward as fast as his nuclear thrusters. His right arm and leg were cut cleanly off even as the Rik Dom's head disintegrated.

The Gundam's knee smashed into the remains, knocking the Rik Dom onto its back while barely slowing down.

"What the hell?" Matt Healy shouted. That was-

Noel Anderson eyes were just wide in surprise from where she was in the shattered control room of the big tray battleship. "That was impossible. No one can be that good, can they?" The Gundam pilot's anger was almost palpable. Was that the power of New Type?

"Don't worry, Sarge! I've got you covered," Zurm said even as his Zaku bracketed the Gundam dead to rights.

The Gundam's GM shield snapped out, sweeping almost all the bullets from the Zaku from hitting anything critical. _"DIE!"_ Alex screamed, even as she blasted towards him with her beam cannon. The shot mostly missed, only shearing his shoulder shield off as he frantically dodged.

"Zurm, get out of there!" Ken shouted. "Use your grenades to cover our retreat." He followed his own advice, dropping a grenade between him and that insane pilot.

The grenades blanketed the whole area, blocking her view and sending her back in momentary retreat. By the time the area cleared, the Zaku were running fast. The only thing she could see were the two air-flyers that the Goufs had arrived on. In a fit of anger, she fired her beam cannon at the one that was further away, instantly destroying and damaging the other one with its explosion. It started belching smoke as it barely cleared the hill.

The psychic shriek of terror from a young girl struck Alex like a trip-hammer to the center of her forehead. Her Gundam stopped instantly as she was psychically assaulted by May Kauwin, a 14 year old prodigy technician onboard the crippled air-flyer, whose arm was lacerated as the pilot of the air support ship crashed-landed her ship as far from the battle as possible. For his heroic efforts, the pilot was rewarded by being impaled by a tree branch that had broken thru the cockpit window, killing him instantly! But May would live and even be recovered by Ken and his troops.

Matt's face was terribly grim as he over saw the devastation of the attack. One pilot killed in action and another wounded. As far as he was concerned, they had totally failed.

Such a different view from General Revil and the rest of the Earth Federation Forces Joint Chiefs.

-

"It was all my fault, Captain Wills," Alex said later in private to Athena. Her back was ramrod straight.

"Sergeant Pierce, it is always easier to look back over what you did in the past and think _'I should have done this'_ but it is never that easy." Athena stood up. "At ease. That's a direct order. I concurred with your decision to try and limit your sensitivity, due to what happened to you in France. My God, woman, they killed your mother! You're allowed to be human!"

"But Tim- I couldn't save him! Because of my selfishness, he's _dead!_" she cried out, even as her shoulders started to shake.

"Alex, there's a hard truth that all soldiers must face. You can't save everyone. We are fighting for our very survival and our principals. Never lose that hate for seeing friends and enemies die. Never become so callous about death, but accept that you can only save those that you can. Without you, Tim and Spike probably would both be dead in Colorado. You saved their lives then and let Tim become the soldier he wanted, to make a difference in this world." The smaller woman put her hand on her shoulder.

"But he's still _dead!_" she anguished.

In a soft voice, Athena said, "Open your mind, let you feel my emotions. If not for yourself, then for me."

"But-"

"Try."

Alex let down the barriers she had built up after the battle down. First was the caring, sympathy and compassion of Athena Wills, overlaying her own feelings of grief and loss. It was unconditional. Tears started to leak out, then a torrent as sobs shook her. She needed to feel that caring feeling from Athena, she realized. Breaking all military protocol, she grasped her senior officer in a tight, desperate hug and drowned her tears on her shoulder.

And then she started healing.

-

"Listen up!" Captain Athena Wills called out over the loud thrum of the transport on their headset. She and Alex were in the first Medea transport. The rest of the 85th was in a second transport. "We've just received information that a prototype Federation cruiser for deploying mobilesuits has been cut off. They are in desperate need for supplies and relief."

"Oh, great. Into the fire again," Spike cat-called. He spared a quick glance to his friend Alex. She was trying to hide it, but she was still hurting over losing her mother and then Tim.

Alex rolled her eyes. "Lt. Healy and his team are going to try and draw these fighters off our tail. So be nice to the nice people playing distraction."

Lt. Matilda Ajan interrupted with, "Lt. Healy and the 03rd Unit are away. And it looks like they are drawing pursuit."

Captain Wills nodded. "Thank you, Lieutenant. Pilots, I want you to have your mobilesuits prepped for launch once we have rendezvous with the White Base."

-

The flotilla of Medea transports landed near the critically damaged White Base Carrier _Pegasus _in a clearing of tall trees. All of the young volunteer soldiers cheered as Lieutenant Matilda Anja appeared. Even the moody Amuro Ray brightened up, even after all his recent problems. The supplies she was bringing would be very welcome.

Supplies started to unload on trucks, heading to the battered ship, when the first flat-bed with a Mobile Suit appeared.

Up on the bridge, Fraw Bow leaned over the edge to get a better look. "That's a mass production Gundam, isn't it, Captain Noa?"

The young lieutenant, who was only provisionally the captain, nodded. "Yes, but I thought they had lost their mobilesuit escort. They ran into a bit of a firefight on the way over here."

Back outside, the pilots of the prototype Project V mobilesuits from Side 7 were discussing things. Kai Shiden was grousing about the newer suits. "That's a mobile suit? It looks like a cheap knock off for a Gundam."

Amuro Ray just gave him an odd look. He was turning back just in time to see another suit trundle by. This was definitely not a mass produced Gundam. It looked almost identical to his own mobilesuit. "Another Gundam?"

The deck crew looked on from the front launching bays of _White Base _as the new mobilesuits were set up under camouflage netting. Amuro stared at the oddly colored Gundam, with it's sky-blue instead of deep-blue of his own Gundam.

Kai nodded. "Yeah. I thought you were the only one, but I guess the Federation has been moving things up. I'm just glad I'm not in a GM though." Just as he said that, a standard GM appeared on its flatbed.

Sayla Mass walked up behind Amuro and coughed to get their attention. "Amuro? Kai? Captain Wills wants to talk to you. She's in the captain's quarters with Captain Bright."

She led them back inside _White Base _and to the captain's door. She opened the door. "Lt. Noa? Captain Wills? Ensign Ray and Shiden."

Bright Noa nodded, waving them in. Amuro noted Captain Wills and a very young seeming sergeant eying him curiously. He frowned as he seemed to feel something, but it eluded him after a moment.

"Lt. Noa?" Alex said, looking intently at the female rating crew that was turning to leave. "I think she needs to stay."

"Sergeant?" Athena asked while raising an eyebrow.

Alex continued staring at the blonde who was looking quite nervous. She could feel she was hiding something, but felt no malice.

Amuro's brow was furrowed. He felt like he was on a precipice of a great discovery. He could feel something from the sandy-haired officer mobilesuit pilot.

"Sergeant?" Athena asked again patiently.

"Oh, sorry. Yes. She needs to be here." Alex shook her head.

Sayla slipped on her mask of indifference. "Of course." Inside, her heart was beating. Were they about to uncover her dark secret?

"Close the door. Captain Wills?" Bright said, turning the meeting over to his senior officer.

"At ease." Athena turned to the four officers of _White Base_. "What do you know about New Types?"

With a dry voice, Sayla spoke up, "Zeon Zum Deikun postulated that mankind would evolve once we left the cradle of mother Earth. Most people don't believe in him."

Athena grinned at Sayla, turning the stern officer into a grinning urchin that just happened to be wearing an officer's uniform. "Well, he was right while being wrong in a lot of particulars."

Sayla looked dumbfounded. "What?"

"Zeon has been researching into New Types and we thought we were very far behind, until we discovered our New Types." Athena was not surprised when Amuro interrupted.

"Who was the first?" the young man asked morbidly.

"Why, you, of course, Ensign Amuro Ray!" Athena held her grin for one more second, then turned more serious. Pointing out Alex, she continued, "Sergeant Peirce was our second potential New Type. She detected a Zeon sneak attack _before anyone else, _by sensing the Mynovski particles that were being spread around."

Kia's eyes bulged, even as he protested loudly, "But that's impossible!"

Sayla and Amuro were thinking similar thoughts, but were uncertain. They had both felt unusual things at times. Bright just listened intently, while narrowing eyes as he took in the suddenly flustered sergeant.

"It should be, yes. The exotic particles have no reaction to any chemical receptor, they just quantumly distort electro-magnetic waves, specifically radio and to lesser extents other frequencies, even such frequencies a light." The petite blonde officer looked intently at all of the members of _White Base's_ crew. "High Command has had to radically rethink the thoughts behind the New Type phenomena. We know it isn't related to being in space-"

"It isn't?" Sayla exclaimed. Her father was so wrong?

"Well, not _directly_ to being in space. Mynovski particles occur naturally in space, in very minute amounts. The Earth's atmosphere absorbs these minute amounts quite easily. According to some egg-heads that Jaburo dug up, empathy and telepathy may be related quantum entanglement or some scientific gobbldygook," Athena said, shrugging helplessly. "But, with Alex here, we finally have demonstrated proof of heightened mental abilities. And from the reports that we managed to decipher from _White Base_, we think that Amuro has had several instances of heightened awareness. Alex at least had training in how to pilot a mobilesuit before she was in combat."

"I'm not sure that I like the idea of mental powers being used in war," Bright finally said slowly.

"It's too late for that. We have sources that say Zeon has already made several breakthroughs in New Type abilities and technology. The Zeon are close to another war machines that might invalidate all of our efforts to catch up from their creating the Mobilesuit. We don't want another One Week War. We've lost enough people to the murdering bastards!" Athena snapped out while slamming her fist on the table. "And by damn, we are not going to allow it if I have anything to say."

"You don't think the Zeon would break the Treaty of Antartica, do you?" Amuro asked worriedly.

Alex interjected abruptly with, "What do you think? What do you _feel?_" She looked at Amuro intently then Sayla. "You know the answer, don't you. You can feel it."

Kai huffed at being ignored. But it was Sayla that finally spoke. "They would, if they thought they could get away with it. Their rulers are monsters."

"Monsters that would do anything to win," Athena said finally. "The only reason that they didn't continue using nuclear and biologic weapons was that they didn't have enough to really finish the job... and the Federation did."

Bright almost shivered. Even he was starting to feel something momentous. "So what do we do?"

"Among the equipment that Lt. Matilda Ajan brought with us is some test equipment based on reports from Sergeant Pierce. We think it might allow us to figure out how strong the New Types on this ship are," Athena said. "I need you to sign these orders and paperwork for your security clearance. Under no circumstances are you to reveal this information to the enemy. The fate of the Federation depends on it."

-

Even as the White Base was being busily repaired for emergency takeoff, three black and purple suits were skimming towards the crippled vehicle. They were being sent to deal with a new threat from the Federation. They were confident in their success, using the latest in Zeon mobilesuit technology, the Rik Dom. They had been training extensively for this.

They were the Black Stars, a trio of Zeon ace pilots that had captured General Revil during the One Week battle. It was one of the most crushing and public humiliations against the Federation's morale after the massive battle and shocking number of death on both sides along with all of the civilians.

"So you guys ready to bag a Feddie Ace?" the lead pilot asked on the laser com.

"Born ready! You know that!" was the catcalled reply.

The federation soldier in the tree stayed very still as they waited for the laser signal to transmit the oncoming direction of the three Rik Doms. A few minutes later, the Doms zoomed around a small hill, catching sight of the white ship. The Pegasus was a very strange ship indeed. It looked very modular to the leader of the Black Stars.

"Looks like we caught them with their pants down. Take out that bridge!" he ordered even as his Rik Dom skimmed over the rough hills.

The Mobile Suit hatch opened, readying to launch a bright red suit that looked like it had dual cannons built into its shoulders. It dodged the first mega-bazooka shot from a Rik Dom which spiraled to strike the heavy armor of the Pegasus.

"Yahooo!" yelled the second Rik Dom pilot as he skirted a small rocky outcropping. A finger stabbed down just as he cornered it, with devastating affect. A heavy land-mine exploded, shooting deadly fragments into the thrusters of the Rik Dom's right leg. The thrusters died, sending the Rik Dom stumbling. "What the hell?"

"Open fire!" Captain Athena Wills shouted, even as the camouflaged Gundams and GMs fired from their crannies, but the two mobile Rik Doms jinked left-right-left again to dodge the trap, taking only minor damage.

The grounded Rik Dom was a sitting duck as he was literally hammered off his feet and onto his back, his mega-bazooka exploding and covering the area in debris.

"Marg!" the ace leader shouted. He had heard that the 'Horse' had been resupplied, but not reinforced to this degree. There where at least three Gundams and three GMs on top of that Gun Cannon that was moving into position. "Retreat!"

"I'm going to take out that ship before I do. Cover me while I go in! All I need is time to fire one Bazooka right into the bridge!" his final last wingman said. His Rik Dom was skating along the ground, avoiding all of the attacks adroitly.

Alex could almost feel the hate emanating from the Rik Dom, it's intensity rising even as its mono-eye flashed. _It's going to for the Pegasus! He's going to try and kill the bridge!_

"No he isn't!" Amuro screamed. The RX-79 prototype leaped into the air on its way to intercept the Rik Dom. His beam rifle was dropped after missing thrice, but his swiftly deployed beam saber cut the mobilesuit in half.

The Rik Dom lost containment spectacularly, rocking the ship and blistering its armor.

"That's not possible! How could we lose to them!" the leader of the Tri-Stars asked, even as he tried to retreat. But there was just nowhere to go, the enemy had him bracketed. First the Hyper-Bazooka shattered, then exploded. Then his Rik Dom's left shoulder disintegrated from a beam spray shot.

Once his leg thrusters were damaged, he was done for. The Rik Dom staggered like a punch-drunk prize-fighter. One final blast from a sniper cannon ended it, sending the Rick Dom to the ground on its face.

The White Base Carrier _Pegasus_ had survived mostly unscathed.

-

The last major Zeon stronghold on Earth, Odessa, was falling to their enemy. Ken was a professional enough soldier to not mince words. They were getting their asses kicked. While the GMs that the Feddies were fielding in large numbers were nothing special, they were effective. A little better than Zaku. That was it.

There were just a lot of them. _A hell of a lot them._ And that didn't even count the massive amount of Feddie tanks. He hadn't thought there were this many _on the entire planet_. The Feddies were really pulling out all stops on this attack.

"Retreat! Regroup at Point Delta!" Ken shouted to his Zaku squad.

"We're running out of places to retreat!"

"Tell me something I don't know!" the sergeant snapped out. Wait. That Gundam! He_ knew_ that mobilesuit. It was that crazy pilot from the Big Tray that they had later found out to be a diversion, but far too late.

The sky-blue and white Gundam was being a holy terror on the field of battle, almost blurring out of the way of a Gouf that attempted to hit it with heavy machine gun fire.

"My god!" one of Ken's Zaku pilots whispered.

Alex leaped left, then right, easily dodging the machine-gun fire. Urgency was building within her. A turning point in the _war_ was coming up. Her breath was becoming raspy, even as her eyes were heavily dilated.

Captain Wills tried the com again. "Sergeant Pierce, what is your status?" She and the rest of the expanded 85th Tactical Squad were trying to follow Alex, but she was running far ahead of them. The only reason she wasn't panicking was that the devastation she was leaving in her path. The rest of them were merely cleaning up behind her. But she was getting worried her soldier's state of mind. All of a sudden, she'd just headed off like some demented robotic jack-rabbit. An armed and dangerous one at that!

Ken yelled out, "Retreat to that ridge to the right!" He was already moving, but he could see that Gundam changing direction and heading towards where he had just called a retreat to. It was screaming danger to him in an instinctual way that he could not ignore.

"Change orders! Just retreat from that fucking Gundam!"

"Gottadefeattheenemy...gottadefeattheenemy..." she repeated, over and over again as her personal mantra against the pain in her heart. She very nearly lost her focus, seeing that hated Zaku with the forehead emblem. Alex could take her revenge for Tim's death... or she could do something to end the war faster. She suddenly skidded to a halt right at the ridge. Her hands started adjusting the power outputs by feel. "Almost there. Can't let the bastards get away."

-

Colonel M'Quve snarled at his operations officer. "How long until we can launch?" He was on the bridge of the Zanzibar class cruiser, fighting to fall in despair over the ground battle going on outside the ship.

"_The Madagascar_ will be ready to launch in just fifty minutes, sir!" the officer reported.

M'Quve frowned as he looked over the display on the ground battle. Did they have fifty minutes? He forced himself to release the tension in his shoulders. Not even the Feddies would be able to break all the way through his lines.

Suddenly, he frowned as a small section of the battlefront turned crimson suddenly. Then the second battle line followed, then just moments later, the third line behind it. It almost looked like the Feddies had somehow broke through the perimeter defense. "Lieutenant Vorbs, what is going on in sector Delta-Thirty?" he yelled out.

"It's being over run, sir! The men are screaming about some sort of Federation super-weapon!" Vorbs looked up from his console.

"Launch the _Madagascar_ immediately! We'll show the damn Feddies that we won't be backed into a corner!" the head officer of Odessa yelled out.

"Our Minovsky Craft system is not fully repaired! This early offensive caught us unawares!" the XO of the Madagascar called out. "We had to repair the system even to hope to make it back into space!"

That diversion over the Feddies battleship had really cost them, setting back carefully planned defenses into total disarray. M'Quve watched the breach widen as someone on the Federation side took full advantage of the break, getting in behind defenses and breaching the line in more and more places.

It was becoming a rout.

Something about the first break in the line was not making sense to him though. He studied it for a second before he drew the line of the breach all the way towards the center of the base... right to this hanger! "All men, man you guns! All mobilesuit pilots, prepare to launch!" he suddenly called out.

-

Amuro grinned, even as he felt the pulse of the battle. Something had totally thrown the Zeon back on the defensive. And he was finally giving some payback for all those unending attacks upon the _Pegasus_. Up ahead, two Zaku IIs were busy holding their ground and defend the huge, armored hanger doors. He nailed the left Zaku with his beam rifle and charged the second one while drawing him beam saber, knowing that it's heavy machine-gun would not even do more than mar the paintjob on his Gundam.

With a sweep, he cut off both of its legs and then its gun arm. Then he trod inside Odessa Base itself, seeing where two Zanzibar cruisers were being readied for takeoff. Six Zeon mobilesuits were busy trying to defend the cruisers from the opposite hanger doors where another Gundam was trying to break through.

_'Alex!'_ Amuro thought to himself. He suddenly leaped forward, even as his beam rifle clipped a Rick Dom. The other mobilesuits, all Goufs, suddenly scattered. That proved their undoing, as the other Gundam managed to make it in and behind cover.

_'Amuro, we have to keep those ships from launching!'_ Alex sent silently. Her Gundam suddenly lurched out, melting the shoulder off another Gouf.

The Gundam pilot nodded, even as he charged under the space cruisers. Even as he continued to fire with his beam rifle, his left arm pulled out his backup beam saber. With a sweep, he started to drag the weapon along the bottom of the cruiser. It started to have secondary explosions from his attack, totally gutting its effectiveness.

M'Quve was shouting orders when the _Eldreen_ exploded, rocking the _Madigascar_ off of its landing pads. "No, it can't end like this!"

"Sir, the rest of the base is over run! Only five percent of the Heavy Lift Rockets were even able to attempt to escape and most of those were shot down."

"This is a disaster of the highest order!" the commander shouted.

That was when an explosion rocked his ship again as a beam disintegrated the poor navigator at the front of the bridge. Then two mobilesuit hands ripped the front of the bridge open.

"Surrender immediately, or be destroyed!" the menancing pale-blue Gundam ordered, even as a racheting whine came from its head.

"We surrender! We surrender!" came the order.


End file.
